Just Can't Walk Away
by CatchingLightningx
Summary: Gabriella Montez and her family have just moved to Albuquerque for a new start and senior year for Gabriella. It brings laughter and tears and complications. But how will it all end? With everything she had ever wanted? Including the boy of her dreams?
1. New Dawn New Day New life

**Title: **Just Can't Walk Away.

**Rating: **M

**Disclaimer: **I don't own any of these characters. High school musical, anything to do with it. Charmed or any of the characters that may have influenced this story. The only thing I own is the plot of this story. I don't own any songs that may be added into this story. I don't own any song's that may be in the chapter names. I don't own any quotes that may be in this story.

**Authors note: **Okay so this is my new idea of course it's going to be It is going to be updated more or less every other day.

Anyways, this story is going to have alot more containing the other characters simply because it gives me more to write about and if you are more comfortable with just reading Troyella it isn't going to be just that. But don't just skip over the bits with the other characters as I probably worked reallyy hard on them. And it's also going to be rated like some of graphic Troyella. So if you think you're going to feel uncomfortable during this, then it isn't really for you. I would also like to point out that I did get a few inspirations from the TV show Charmed. E.g. the house they live in and the family layout but it's not a crossover, there will be no magic of any kind in this story. It's also going to be Gabriella based. There will be some Troy base things like in right here with you but I like to focus on Gabriella more, as I like to read about the Gabriella side of things more. I don't know why, I just do. Soooo guys, sit back, relax and here it is: Just Can't Walk Away.

* * *

No. You're not a bad person. You're a terrific person. You're my favourite person, but every once in a while, you can be a real c**t

Bill 'Snake Charmer' – Kill Bill 2

* * *

She was dreading it.

There was no doubt about it.

To say she was scared, nervous, anxious, petrified, frightened, afraid was an understatement.

She was absolutely shitting herself

She wasn't worrying about being in a new house. She was happy about that.

She was scared about walking into the new school that she knew was called 'East high' in less than 24 HOURS?!

She was going to be described as the 'new girl'. Teachers would introduce her as 'the new girl' people would talk about her and say 'have you seen that new girl'. She had never been described as that before. She was going to be stared at like she had 2 heads, no scratch that 10 heads. Everyone would look at her as she walked down the corridors of the school.

Why couldn't they have just stuck it out for another year and then moved. That would have been better. She wouldn't have to go to school tomorrow for the last year and have no friends, and be like Cady Heron and sit in the bathroom eating her lunch.

The truth was she did want to move. It had its pro's and con's. She wanted to get away; it was a fresh start for her and her family. Nobody would have to know about what they had been through, they wouldn't have to go down the street and be looked at with sympathy looks. It would give them a clean slate.

They had gotten off the plane around a half hour ago and she was now sitting in the back seat of the black jeep. She lifted her legs and bent them under her, pointing them towards the window. Her deep chocolate orbs fixed out of the clear glass.

"Hey, come on. It's moving day" The enthusiastic female voice entered her ears and drew her from her thoughts. She turned her mocha eyes onto the female figure that was sitting next to her in the middle seat of the back row. Her dark brown hair was tightly tied up to the back of her head, her deep brown eyes that mirrored her own locked on her. She was blessed with a thin slender frame, the way they were all built. She wasn't that tall only a half an inch taller than herself. Her body was covered in a white vest and grey high wasted trousers with the vest tucked into it. That was her sister. Known as Cheryl Montez.

She was 27 and currently single. She had always been in different jobs but before they moved she had just graduated from college for the second time and had done a degree in psychology and she wanted to come to Alba whatever to look for a new career.

Gabriella Montez shrugged her shoulders loosely while looking into her sister's orbs. "Did you know that moving day is the second most stressful event that can happen in a person's life?"

An amused smile crossed her face while her lips parted for her to say something but she was interrupted by the driver her eldest sister Alyssa Green, married to Adam Green, Alyssa's almost black hair draped down to just below what Gabriella knew was her bra line, she could hear a laugh erupting from the back of her throat. "Way to put a downer on things Gabi"

Alyssa was 30 and married. She had been married to Dan Green 3 years and had they couldn't have been happier. They had a son Lucas and he was 2 now. Gabriella smiled at the thought of Alyssa's swollen stomach. The truth was that Alyssa was pregnant with her second child. She was 4 months pregnant and her bump was only slight. In San Francisco

Gabriella let the lazy smile dust over her features, through everything they always knew how to make her laugh. "So what's the first, since you're an expert huh?"

The other voice asked her from the back of the car. Gabriella turned her neck to look at her, she had deep green pea coloured eyes, she was different from the other two, her skin was pale, her hair was black and it was tied from her face. Phoebe Montez. Her thin eyebrows were raised as she looked at her sceptically. Her love heart shaped lips parted the little bit to speak but she was interrupted by the masculine voice sat in the passenger's seat.

"Living with 4 women, ain't that right buddy?" Her brother in law, Lucas Green coaxed while shifting in his seat and placing his hand on the 2 year olds knee that was sat next to Cheryl and squeezing it playfully.

Gabriella always thought what it was like for a man to live with 4 women, as her nephew, Lucas. Couldn't talk yet, but throughout Gabriella's life it had always been a female dominated house hold, and she didn't know what it would be like any other way. "You know Dan. You're treading on thin ice" Cheryl joked playfully.

"Yeah, honey. You're gonna be sleeping in the basement if you keep coming out with snide remarks like that" Alyssa played while Gabriella felt the car turn down a street, it was different already.

So much different than San Francisco where she had previously lived, everything was always so busy there and here, wherever here was, that she couldn't pronounce the name of. Alba something, the air was quiet, tranquil. She could imagine it was the place where the first thing on a morning you would be greeted by birds singing songs to one another rather than car horns and people cursing one another.

"So what's this town called anyways?" Gabriella asked, for what must have been the thirteenth time in that one day, at least.

"Albuquerque" The three females and the one male voice responded to her in unison and in what Gabriella could tell was annoyance that bled through their tones. A beam crossed her blemish free face. "Okay, I get it"

It wasn't that she disliked not living with her sister's. She could guarantee that girls her age who lived with both a mother and father would prefer to live with their sisters and they would find a mothered and fathered household boring. But Gabriella sometimes had to wonder to herself. What would happen if she did have a mom and a dad?

"Okay so this is our new street" The driver of the car spoke excitedly. Gabriella narrowed her chocolates on her. How could she be this excited about moving house? She wasn't excited. Well she was. She just wasn't looking forward to being a 'new girl'

The street was long. That was the only way to describe it. Really long. The houses were all similar. The gardens were big. There were trees on the sidewalk. They were browns, oranges and yellows because of the new result of it being the fall. The leaves were blissfully falling from the branches and sticking to the sidewalk and the pavement on the road.

Her eyes were looking at all of the houses, the ones on the right were on a hill and the ones on the left were on flat ground. What drew her attention the most was that the houses on the hill were different colours. Yellow, grey, blue. And then the car came to a halt.

"So this is home?" Alyssa questioned as she pulled up to the sidewalk in the jeep. It was at that moment that everybody in the car lunged themselves to the glass on the right hand side to look at their new home

Gabriella's jaw almost dropped to the floor in awe. It was beautiful.

There was a grey stone wall surrounding the edges of the garden. A gap for where the garden pathway was and then there was a long driveway that would fit all cars on, that were being brought on the next day. Then along the stone wall of the garden had plants, flowers tree's behind it.

The grass was the colour that healthy grass should be and it made Gabriella wonders if it was fake or not. It was radiating light. There were flowers all on the pathway leading to the door. Magenta colours, golden yellow colours. There were steps going all the way up the garden path and there it was.

She couldn't believe she was going to be living here.

The house was red and it was on 3 storeys, so she thought from the outside. The sun was beaming down on the house which made it look even more stunning. There were bay windows on the right hand side of the house and it looked old fashioned.

But comfortable at the same time.

Where did she used to live San Fran.....? What?

"Wow" The voice from behind her stunned through her ears. Gabriella turned her head to see Phoebe's jaw dropped in amazement like hers was previously.

There was a removal van parked at the side in the driveway and men were walking in and out of the open door's carrying their entire lives into the house.

"Alyssa come on. Come on. I want dibs on my room" Gabriella pounded on the driver's seat to urge Alyssa to drive into the driveway of their new home.

"I don't think so honey. We all know I get the biggest room" Cheryl pointed out and grabbed onto Gabriella's shoulder that was covered in a grey long tunic shirt, with chunky brown buttons on the sleeves.

She was close with all of her sisters and they had been through so much together, they had lost so many people as a family which obviously did give Gabriella her own trust issues. She could never bear if anything were to happen to any of them. Because she had no mother or father it made them all closer. Most people would bicker with their siblings but Gabriella didn't, of course there were little arguments say if Gabriella were to 'borrow' a coat or another item of clothing and accidently didn't put it back, of course there were bickers. Other little ones about who was going to take out the dishes or take out the garbage. But no major bitch fights.

None at all.

The midnight black jeep pulled to a halt on the driveway down the side of the house, and it seemed like a rat race, all of the individuals in the car darted from it and started to run in what was their new home.

She didn't even bother to grab her boots from the car and she could feel the piercing cold of the grass on her feet. As she was running past Phoebe she felt her thin arm dart out across Gabriella's chest as she was laughing uncontrollably, her legs buckled and she fell on the floor feeling the impact on her chest, after she had grabbed Phoebe's thin slender leg and she buckled to the floor and they both laid on their backs their chests matching pace heaving as the laughter was coming out in fits at that moment in time.

"Hey. Kids! Come on!"

Alyssa's assertive voice beckoned the two girls who were acting like 4 year olds. Alyssa had taken on the mother role of all of them. Since the evens that had happened in Gabriella's life she had to have a mother role.

From the corner of Gabriella's chocolate spheres she saw Phoebe lifting her legs up beneath her and rising to her feet, while the giggles were still erupting from the back of Gabriella's throat, Phoebe reached out her long muscular arm and Gabriella raised her eyebrows amusingly to silently ask if she was being serious and Phoebe responded with a slight nod of the head and a tight smirk creeping onto her face.

Gabriella reached out her olive tanned arm and latched onto Phoebe's hand, she felt a slight force lifting her from the ground that collided with her back, when she was half way in the air, and Phoebe raised her eyebrows amusingly. "Ah-ah" She let go of the hand she was holding and Gabriella felt her back collide with the hard ground again, a loud breathe escaping from her throat from the shock of the fall while loud laughs were ringing through her ears.

"Phoebe! Will you two quit being babies and come inside please" Gabriella lifted her legs up and stood up on her two feet and seeing Phoebe's tan face pout at hers.

"Coming Mom" Phoebe's amused feminine voice called to Alyssa who was stood on the path between the door and steps holding onto the pillar that connected the downstairs to the upstairs.

"Now"

"Uh-oh Phoebes is in trouble" Gabriella cooed in a mocking tone before pouting in response at her sister.

Gabriella watched as Phoebe flash her perfectly straight teeth as her cheek muscles pulled making the grin even wider. "Come on sis"

Phoebe held out her arm bent offering for Gabriella's. She smiled and happily obliged.

"You know what Gabi? Phoebe grinned while her head perked in Gabriella's direction. Gabriella's eyebrows rose in a question of hearing what was about to be said. "I really think we're gonna be happy here"

Gabriella smiled coyly. Suddenly she had warmed to the idea of living in Albuquerque.

"I'm warming to it"

Hours had passed. Room's had been explored. Room's had been marked. Rooms had been changed. Furniture had been placed down and currently Gabriella was stationed in the kitchen. The walls were a bright but dim lemon colour, there was only one window in there but the light that came through that bounced from the lemon walls made it more inviting. Gabriella was holding a steamy cup of coffee, changed her clothes and was currently dressed in a cosy cream oversized dress jumper with bare legs.

* * *

"You ok?" Dan questioned as he took steps on the grey tiles on the floor towards Gabriella who was stood next to the window looking out at the scenery of her new neighbourhood. She had to admit that it was strange being in a new town. A new city! She had never been new before. But it was a good kind of strange right? It was intriguing.

"I'm okay. It's just weird" Gabriella admitted before turning around to look at Dan who was looking at her sceptically.

Most people would find it weird that Gabriella was so close to her brother in law. But he had been there for the family so much through the past 5 years, the 2 before being married to her sister and the three of being her brother in law. He was like her best friend. And she could trust him with her life. "What's weird?"

Gabriella ran her fingers through her raven curls as she sighed deeply. "This. The whole new house thing. The whole excitement of starting a new school tomorrow but also the fact that I'm actually terrified. I've never been new before. I was brought up in San Francisco in the same house. In the same neighbourhood that I could walk around blindfolded. With friends that I had to say goodbye to. And now I have to make new ones"

She watched as Dan's deep blue eyes narrowed as she could tell he was taking in what she had just said. That was the thing with Dan. No matter what the problem, he would always know the right thing to say that would make everything feel better. "Maybe it's a good thing you're new. That we're all new. You're gonna be starting a new school with nobody knowing a thing about you. That's a good thing. You can be whoever you want to be. The person you weren't in your previous high school. It's a clean slate. Use it to your advantage Gabriella. You're a smart girl. You'll figure it out"

Gabriella closed her eyes blissfully and inhaled deeply. "You're right. Thanks Dan"

She focused back out into the light outside and the sun was slowly setting and hugging the cup to her tighter.

"So what about school. You've got to be a little tiny bit excited?" Dan mocked as he pointed his index fingers and pressed them into Gabriella's flat stomach, causing a laugh to originate from the back of her throat.

"Excited?" She let out in a deep breath. "Like I said, terrified"

The idea of a new school did excite her a little but she wasn't going to admit that. The fear overwrote it in a heartbeat. "What scares you about it?"

A sarcastic laugh escaped from her mouth as her eyebrows rose in amusement. "Let's try what doesn't scare me about it. The list would be so much shorter"

Dan was about to open his mouth to say something to the raven haired beauty who was standing beside the window when a loud ding-dong rang throughout her ears, her coffee eyes connected with her brother in laws and the pair of their eyebrows furrowed in confusion. People were coming to their house when they had been living in it literally around 5 hours?

"What?" Gabriella muttered to herself.

"Gabriella? Dan?" The voice echoed throughout the kitchen walls which Gabriella knew automatically was the eldest of the Montez family. "We have visitors"

"Visitors?" Dan's tenor voice questioned before taking the lead out of the kitchen.

Gabriella's footsteps made minute sounds on the tiling, she followed Dan out of the pale yellow door and through the corridor that lead to the foyer, and her feet connected with the sandy wooden floor what lead to the front door, and there was a dark ring of an oak shade of wood accompanied in the middle by the same shade of sandy wooden floor, the cold connecting with her skin and running throughout her body.

And there adjacent to the brown oak doors that were accompanied by two glass panes of stained glass windows with orange blue green and yellow rectangle with the clear glass in the middle. Stood 3 people. A man, a woman, and a girl. The girl looked around Gabriella's age. They all had chocolate skin. The young girl's hair was bobbed and ended just below her chin; she had an inviting smile on her face which was a warm as she looked at Gabriella.

"We're sorry about the mess. As you can see we haven't had a chance to clean up yet Gabriella, Dan. These are our new neighbours" Alyssa apologized referencing to the boxes and bubble wrap that was scattered on the floor.

Alyssa was a neat freak. Complete neat freak. She had to have a clutter free house, no mess at all and Gabriella knew it would be driving her crazy at that moment in time that guests were in the house and the first impression they would be getting of their new house was that it was messy.

"It's okay. Don't worry about it" The man explained. He was a tall man. Around 6ft. He had an oval shaped head which had short black hair with a tone of grey highlighted in the strands. He was a thin man, he had extremely dark brown eyes, almost black but Gabriella could see the highlights of the brown hidden in there. He had a gap in between his two front teeth.

If Gabriella had to pinpoint who he looked like she would say he resembled Samuel L. Jackson.

The woman stood next to him who Gabriella assumed was his wife. Was shorter than the Samuel L Jackson lookalike. She stood to his shoulder height or maybe shorter. Her hair was long, and it was slightly curled at the ends. She also had brown eyes but they were much lighter than her suspected husband.

And what looked like their daughter. Gabriella could see that she was a pretty girl. She was thin, and she looked smart. She was dressed in a black pencil skirt, accompanied with a white vest and a black cardigan that draped over her shoulders.

"This is my husband Dan, and my youngest sister Gabriella" Alyssa introduced. "Gabriella sweetie. Mr Mckessie was just telling me that you're starting the same school that his daughter goes to so at least you'll know somebody"

If she wanted to be friends with her that was.

"Hi. I'm Taylor" The girl reached out her long arm to connect with Gabriella's in a civilized handshake causing Gabriella to break into a grin at the girl stood in front of her.

"Gabriella" She smiled.

"Gab? Why don't you take Taylor into the living room? You can talk about school" Dan propositioned to her. Gabriella solemnly nodded her head and walked into the living room Taylor's footsteps echoing behind her own.

"So Does it such starting a new school as a senior?" Taylor asked her to break the ice between the two.

Of course it did! Gabriella loosely shrugged her shoulders while sitting down on the couch that had just been put down not so long before. "Yeah, definitely. I mean new classes, new teachers. New people. Just the whole concept of being new scares the living daylights out of me"

Taylor smiled a tight smile at Gabriella before matching her and sitting down on the material on the beige couch. "I get that. But if you want. You can hang out with me and my friends tomorrow. So you can check the new friend's thing off of your list"

Gabriella took a drink from the mug she was holding, feeling the steamy liquid burn the back of her throat all the way down to her stomach. "You sure?" Taylor nodded rapidly. "Thanks"

Now she was sure of one thing. If people were going to be as nice as Taylor Mckessie then she was sure she was going to end up happy.

Little did she know that senior year would ultimately be the best year of her life.

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**A/N: To carry on or not to carry on? Let me know :) You're reviews mean alot! **


	2. East High

**Authors Note - **Hiiii everyonee! Thanks for the support in the last chapter and I actually couldn't help but to update but don't worry the right here with you chapter will be up relatively soon I'm just trying to perfect it! I know this is insanely long but just break it up if you want and I wanted to portay how close Gabriella's family unit is :) So let me know what you think from that little button that's on the bottom of this page! It's really appreciated. Oh and because I'm from England I don't understand how the American education system works so if AP music isn't a AP subject sorry :)

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"Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get"

Forrest Gump – Forrest Gump

* * *

She was pretty sure her lungs were tied into knots and forced into the back of her mouth. The nerves were spouting through the roof.

Her long slender frame was staring back at her in the mirror and she had gotten up two hours earlier than she normally would have in San Francisco so she had a head start on what to wear for today.

The worst day of her life.

At that moment in time it was.

She had a pair of white pink and blue plaid shorts and a white vest cami clothing her as she was holding different outfits up by the hanger against her petite frame, becoming frustrated and lunging them all over her newly furnished bedroom.

It was spacious. There was a bay window situated where she could fix her chocolate gaze out into the front garden. The light was beaming through the window currently causing a spotlight to be formed throughout the middle of the room. She had a walk in closet where all the boxes were, the door currently open with all of the boxes opened and clothes were lightly dotted all over. The bed was situated in the middle of the room. A queen sized bed which currently just had a duvet and pillows.

All she needed really.

A familiar light tapping on the door was followed by the creaking of the old fashioned wooden door making a creaking sound which then signalled tiny footsteps echoing on the varnished floor. "It's only me. I brought you some coffee"

Gabriella let out an aggravated groan and with force the hanger she was holding left her hand until she heard a clanging against the floor. "Shit Gabi. An inch closer and I'd be wearing your coffee"

Phoebe's voice was attempting to calm her but it wasn't doing anything. Gabriella was known to be in denial when she was nervous and at this particular moment, it wasn't an exception. Gabriella turned on her heels to meet the gaze of her elder sister. "Was there something you wanted?"

Gabriella could tell that Phoebe was stifling a laugh and she put her hand to her face to hide the grin. "I brought you some coffee. Alyssa wanted to make you some toast but I said not to"

She walked into the closet and grabbed a blue jumper dress with white frills down the front, walking back out she held it up against her frame, shifting her head to either side in the mirror. "You did right" She murmured quietly.

As soon as she held it up she knew it wasn't right for her. Throwing it across the bedroom and when it didn't make a sound she assumed it had landed on the bed. "So you nervous" Phoebe called into the closet to Gabriella who was rummaging through boxes.

OF COURSE! She was absolutely quivering in her 'boots' at that moment in time but she wasn't going to admit that. Denial. That's what she was. In a state of absolute denial. "No"

She heard Phoebe laugh loudly at her denial. "You could've fooled me!"

Gabriella let an irritated scoff originate from the back of her throat. "Shut up! Okay" A few more boxes were opened and their contents spilled on the floor. "Okay Phoebus! Help me!"

From her ears she could hear the footsteps echoing followed by a sigh. "Phoebus?" She questioned with a crooked grin on her face. Gabriella's chocolate spheres were doubled in size at how calm she was being. "Okay. I'll help. Go drink your coffee"

Gabriella placed her boney hands onto her thighs to pull herself into a standing position. Phoebe switching positions with her. "Go!"

Gabriella held up her hands surrendering to Phoebe's proposition. Her legs carried her to the chest of drawers situated near the door, picking up the mug she felt the hot liquid burn down her throat, instantly making her feel at ease. "Did you drug this or something?"

Phoebe's footsteps carried her from the closet carrying from what Gabriella could see was two items of clothing. "Yeah. I thought hmmm new day. Gabriella's first day at her new school. What better way for her to fit in than to slip a few drugs into her morning coffee"

Gabriella let a smile slip her face for the first time that morning as the knots in her stomach were finally loosening. "You're good"

She had arranged to see Taylor when she had gotten to school that day when she saw her. As Gabriella had to take Alyssa in with her for a meeting with the principal and she had to get her schedule. "Come here"

Phoebe beckoned. Gabriella obeyed and walked over to her bed where the clothes were placed. Phoebe placed an arm around Gabriella's shoulders which she succumbed to and let her heavy head drape on her shoulder. "Okay. So what I want you to do. Is put these clothes on. NO buts. You're gonna look flawless in whatever you wear. And I also want you to come downstairs, EAT some breakfast and then Alyssa and I will take you to school"

She looked down onto the bed and saw a pair of skinny jeans and a black ribbed vest that Gabriella knew hugged to her curves perfectly. "I haven't got a..."

Phoebe held up her index finger and signalled for Gabriella to shut up talking. "Stop worrying. Now chop chop. You don't wanna be late."

Her eyes doubled in size. She hadn't even considered being late. She couldn't be late. The humiliation of walking in a new classroom, with new people, being late. All of them turning their heads to look at her and stare at the 'new girl'. She could feel bile collecting in the pit of her stomach at being called the new girl. And that's what she was going to be called.

15 minutes later she found herself breathing shallowly to calm herself. She was ready. As ready as she could be. She had washed. She had showered. She had a little application of make up on her features. She had spent 45 minutes freshly curling her hair with tongs and it was now bouncing full of life against her shoulders as she walked down the stairs. The black cami she was wearing was tight. But not too tight, it stuck to her flat stomach and the swells of her breasts. The denim jeans were hugged to her long legs and she had decided to wear dark chocolate brown boots that matched her eyes, calf length.

She could hear the echoes of laughter and the sound of her nephew making newly found infant noises. He was going to talk soon. There was something in the pit of her stomach telling her so.

"And here she is" The echo of Cheryl Montez's voice confidently announced to the rest of the kitchen. Gabriella breathed deeply and let a smile crack the moulds of her face.

Gabriella shrugged her thin shoulders loosely while she sat down on the tall stool. "Okay. I guess I've been a little crazy this morning huh?"

Alyssa walked over to Gabriella with a plate that contained pancakes which made Gabriella hurl at the scent of them and the thought of them digesting in her stomach made her stomach want to explode. "A little?"

Gabriella lightly pushed the plate away from her line of vision, and heard humming echoing from the walls. "Good morning all" Phoebe cheered.

"Okay maybe alot. But I'm just. I'm freaking out. Okay!" Gabriella exclaimed and watched everybody narrow their gaze's on her.

Alyssa picked up a dish filled with what Gabriella knew was mush. How a 2 year old found that appealing she would never know. "Pheebs do me a favour and feed Lucas for me"

She handed Phoebe the dish and watched her pull up a stool to feed her nephew. "Gabriella. I don't understand what the big deal is. You go to a new school. You rock. You rocked at you're old school"

The truth was at her old school Gabriella had everything she had ever wanted. She was popular. Extremely popular. The most popular girl in school. Everybody knew who she was. Guys practically drooled over her and girls would kill to be her friend. People would invite her to their parties just to say that Gabriella Montez had attended their party. She had a tight circle of friends who all knew that Gabriella hated the whole superficial thing.

"Eat your pancakes." Alyssa ordered and pushed the plate back towards her.

Gabriella knew that she wouldn't win against pissed Alyssa. She picked up the fork and started to tuck into the pancakes that as soon as they touched her lips she groaned. "They're good" She stated with a mouth full.

"Okay shoot" Cheryl fired at Gabriella and placed a glass of orange juice in front of the plate.

More pancakes were placed in her mouth. "Okay. So what if they don't like me? What if they don't accept the new girl? What if I'm late? What if I get there and I fall and I violently hurt myself and humiliate myself in front of the entire class. And what if. And what if, I'm a geek and all the popular kids they bully me out of the school" She took a deep breath at her sudden outburst.

"You done?" Cheryl questioned.

Gabriella sighed again and looked down at the empty plate of pancakes and instantly felt her stomach bulge at how fast she had eaten.

"Pancakes make everything better" Alyssa smiled convincing Gabriella that she could see this day.

"No. Lucas. No" Phoebe chanted, Gabriella looked over and saw Phoebe's hand momentarily dip into the food and she wiped it on Lucas' face.

"And that Luke is your 25 year old aunt" Alyssa announced and took a cloth to wipe Lucas's face which was radiant with an ear to ear grin. "So missy I like to throw breakfast over my 2 year old nephew. What are you going to do today?"

Gabriella had now completely calmed down; the nerves in her stomach were settling along with the pancakes that she had just eaten. "All will be revealed"

Her eyes shrunk in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You'll soon see"

"Gabriella" Taylors enthusiastic voice announced as she felt her icy palm touch her boney arm that was now covered in a tan coloured leather jacket that Cheryl had given to her earlier that morning.

A beam radiated on Gabriella's face. She had just recently gotten from the principal's office where she had gotten her schedule and a map and she was now trying to make sense of this whole building.

There were red and white beams everywhere. Bulletin boards were plastered on every wall she looked at, advertising various different clubs, sports. It intrigued Gabriella. There were so many different kinds of people. And none of them really stopped to stare at her. A few guys turned their heads but it wasn't what she had expected.

She was wearing a high wasted black pencil skirt that hugged to her legs and hips perfectly and a white vest tucked into the rim of the skirt and she was carrying what looked like a black cardigan in Gabriella's eyes.

"Taylor, Hey." She waved enthusiastically in front of Taylor's face which beamed at the shaking girl.

"How you doing?" She questioned and grabbed onto Gabriella's arm again and started walking indicating for Gabriella to follow.

Gabriella inhaled deeply. "I'm still trying to catch my breath"

Taylor grinned tightly at the 'new girl' before turning a sharp corner which lead to an actual quiet corridor. "Don't worry. It's always like this on the first day back, even more so now because it's senior year" She explained, she held out her long extended arm indicating for Gabriella's schedule that she was holding in her left arm. "Can I?"

Gabriella happy obliged and handed her the schedule. "Sure"

Taylor narrowed her almost black eyed gaze onto the piece of paper as she inspected the piece of paper intently. "Oh my god. You are in the same homeroom as me and..... AP music? You took AP music?" Taylor grinned mischievously and Gabriella watched as two guys walked down the corridor wearing red tracksuit bottoms, and white vests with red tracksuit tops.

"Yeah" She responded distantly and watched the two guys look at the two girls stood beside the lockers.

"Most people think that's crazy. Why?" Taylor interrogated Gabriella while she was inspecting the walls that were red and had white streamers hanging from the walls.

"Why do people think its crazy or why did I pick it?" She teased and Taylor handed the schedule back to Gabriella.

"Why did you pick it" Taylor grinned and Gabriella let a small laugh escape from her throat.

Gabriella had always been interested in music since she was a little girl it was always how she lived her life. She had always written down her feelings and managed to make a song out of it. "Have you ever heard a song that totally reflects how you're feeling? And in some way it speaks out to you and it helps you. You know?"

Taylor's black slender plucked eyebrows rose as did her lips. "I think you're my sister"

Gabriella laughed enthusiastically before a familiar ringing pierced right through of her body. Her chocolate spheres were doubled in alarm and surprise. "That's the warning bell right?"

Taylor nodded enthusiastically as she grinned at the olive skinned girl. "Yeah. It takes a lot to get used to that loud noise. I've been here nearly four years and it still scares the shit out of me...... I love your jacket"

Gabriella brought her boney hand up to sweep through her midnight hair and it then followed down to the jacket sleeve. "Thanks. My sister gave it to me"

Taylor started to walk with Gabriella following behind. "So you just live with your sisters huh?"

Oh no. Avoided topic. She was going to ask about her parents. Something she really wanted to avoid. "Um and my brother in law. And my nephew"

Taylors narrow eyebrows narrowed in what Gabriella knew was curiosity. No. She couldn't ask. "No parents?"

Bingo!

Gabriella sunk her perfectly white teeth into her bottom lip nervously, so hard she thought it might bleed. "Um, no"

Taylor nodded solemnly. And then her lips parted... she was going to say something. She was and no doubt it was going to be... "So this is home room"

Gabriella exhaled in relief at Taylor's announcement. Maybe she sensed Gabriella's insecurity and thought she'd pass on it. Either way Gabriella was happy. "I daren't go in"

Taylor laughed enthusiastically at Gabriella who was stood at the door who was peering around the door frame at everybody who was sitting or talking around the classroom.

"Tay. Taylor!" A masculine voice boomed entering through her ears. Both of the girls turned to see a tall guy. He was around 5 ft 11 inches according to Gabriella. His hair was... the only way to describe it was crazy. It was a shade darker than Gabriella's but a shade lighter than Taylor's. It was in ringlets and it bounced up and down as he walked closer to the two girls.

His milk chocolate eyes were looking at the two girls intently and closely but also kind of narrowed at the unfamiliar girl who was standing outside the classroom. "Hey" He announced and wrapped an arm around Taylor and Gabriella crossed her leg infront of the other looking down to the floor in a state of awkwardness.

"Hey" Taylor responded. If Gabriella had to guess she would have guessed that he was Taylor's boyfriend. "Oh. Chad. This is Gabriella Montez. She's new"

Gabriella's timid chocolate spheres lifted to see Chad glaring at her with a grin on his face. "How you doing?"

Gabriella smiled tightly at the guy. "Hi"

Taylor seemed to be amused by Gabriella's shyness as Gabriella was shifting and her teeth were sunk into her bottom puffy lip. "This is Chad Danforth. He's in homeroom too"

Technically she had a new friend. Well acquaintance. "Whoa. And you've not prepared her for Mrs D?"

Gabriella's eyes narrowed in confusion. Should she be scared of Mrs D? Who was Mrs D? "Chad stop it. Gabriella you are gonna be fine"

She sighed deeply. And the nerves kicked in again. The pancakes she had eaten this morning were violently threatening to erupt from the back of her throat. "Yeah. I was just kidding. You're gonna be a hit"

Gabriella looked at the boy sceptically. She was going to be a hit? What did that mean? "Excuse me?"

Both Taylor and Chad were grinning down at the unknowing Gabriella. "With the guys. You're hot" Chad announced.

Gabriella immediately felt her cheeks flash pink and she looked down at the dirty tiles on the floor. "Chad. You don't tell another girl she's hot while you're girlfriends here. We talked about that"

Gabriella's head rose and smiled at the two people she now knew was a couple.

"Come on"

And that was the start to her day.

"So wait you've been together a year?" Gabriella questioned as herself and Taylor walked through the door that she knew was now AP music.

"Yes" Taylor grinned. They had been talking about her and Chad since they had left homeroom, and from talking to Chad in the class and from talking to Taylor. She couldn't have found two opposites. But opposites attract right?

"Gabriella" A harsh whisper entered her ears. Her eyebrows furrowed. Who knew her name? As she turned on her steps there she was.

Her eyes jumped too many sizes bigger than they were supposed to be. There she was. Her sister. In her classroom. Oh no. "Phoebe. What are you doing here?"

Phoebe seemed amused at Gabriella's sudden outburst. "Like I said all will be revealed"

Taylor was still standing next to Gabriella with confusion written all over her features. "Taylor you remember my sister? Phoebe?"

Phoebe had a warm inviting smile on her features and Taylor matched nodding her head in agreement. "Yeah"

Annoyance was rising in her blood stream and she felt steam was coming from her ears. "Phoebe what are you doing here? You can't be in my class"

"Summer is over. Unfortunately for you this year isn't. Please sit down" The teacher from what Gabriella remembered was called Mr White so Taylor had told her.

"Gabriella you can come sit with us" Taylor motioned to the table that was in the left hand corner. It had 4 seats around the table and there was currently a girl sitting there.

Gabriella and Taylor took their seats in the left hand corner of the classroom.

"Hey" The girl greeted but Gabriella didn't know whether it was to Taylor or the both of them so she just smiled timidly.

"Hey. This is Gabriella" Taylor introduced and Gabriella smiled brightly at her for what felt like the thousandth time.

The girl was small. Petite. Even though Gabriella couldn't see her full size or figure she could sense she was a small petite girl. She looked timid and shy. Just by looking at her Gabriella could tell she was probably going to get on with her. She had light brown hair; Gabriella would even have dared to say a sandy brown. The light was shining on it and there was a tint of blonde present. As she gave Gabriella a closed mouth smile the dimples were tight on her features. She had light blue eyes, so light they looked grey.

"Gabriella. This is Kelsi. I think you two are going to get along well" Taylor commented before she was interrupted by...

"Okay. Let's get on. Kids this year's going to be different. We're gonna do a project. But truth be told this project is going to be equivalent to 75% of your final grade that you'll finish high school with. You and the people on your table are going to work together. And as you know who Phoebe Montez is I'll hand over to you Miss so you can explain to the class" White explained and Gabriella sunk her head down and feeling her cheeks gradually become a light shade of crimson.

And that is what Phoebe Montez did for a career.

She was the owner of a major record label.

She had done well for herself. Really well.

And she had left her company in the hands of her number two in San Francisco in hope to find some talent here in Albuquerque so she could build an office here.

Phoebe was like Gabriella in a lot of ways. Gabriella had always offered a helping hand and she had been told that sometimes that was a problem for her. She had always seen the good in people and she had been ended up taken advantage of in the past. And now Phoebe here wanted to help everyone who she believed had a chance.

"Okay. I'm Phoebe Montez. Some of you may have heard of me some of you may not. My little sister is actually sitting in the back left hand corner of this room"

Oh no. Shit. Fuck. No. Her face was as red as a beetroot; it was something you saw in the movies when everybody turned around as if on cue to stare at the new girl. Gabriella fired daggers in Phoebe's direction who was smiling contently with her accomplishment.

"However, the school here has asked me to help you guys. What this project consists of is you and you're tables working together like Mr. White said. You're going to produce 5 songs. And like there are 5 people on each table with one exception. You all have to write the songs and I will get time for you with a recording studio where you can all record. And then you will put on a performance of what you think is your best song and then" She paused and took a deep breath. "You will be judged on it and the best one will get a record deal with our company. But... you still get graded on your material, before the whole competition thing"

Phoebe finished her speech and lent back on the teachers desk. From the corner of Gabriella's eye she could see that some guys who were sitting in the right hand corner of the room were practically drooling at the 25 year old woman who was standing at the front of the classroom.

"Thank you. Miss Montez. Does anybody have any questions?" Mr White concluded and the four arms in the right hand corner shot up as if their lives were depending on it. Phoebe had a content smile on her face but Gabriella knew the questions they were about to ask were nothing of the sort about music. "Yes. David"

"Miss Montez. Are you single?" A round of sniggers erupted from around the classroom and Gabriella gazed down at the floor in a state of being uncomfortable.

"That's enough David" White scolded and Gabriella watched her sister walk over to a seat in the corner of the classroom. Right next to her. "Okay so we're going to go around the class and ask everybody what music means to them"

"What are you doing?" Gabriella hissed.

On the other hand Phoebe seemed rather amused by what had just occurred. "I'm helping out"

She could feel a red haze being placed infront of her eyes, embarrassment and annoyance at her sister being at HER school. HER school. No wonder she had avoided the subject of what she was doing today. Bitch. "Yeah but here?"

"Miss Montez. Gabriella?" Oh no. She wasn't even listening. What was the question again? Something about music. A sudden light bulb flickered on in her mind. What music meant to them.

"Um, I guess that music inspires me. I guess there's always some song that reflects how you're feeling and it somehow helps you through the day. I've always aspired to write songs and stuff because I guess I'd want to be that person who reaches into someone else's life y'know?" White seemed content with her answer as he nodded solemnly with a grin on his face.

"I think we can all learn stuff from the new girl" There it was again. NEW GIRL! "Okay guys we'll leave it from there and you can go and sort you're music out. Oh and Miss Mckessie" Taylor looked up at the calling of her name. "Tell Miss Evans to not miss my lesson again"

Gabriella's eyes furrowed as confusion crossed her adorable face while everybody was packing away and running out of the classroom as quick as they could. "Miss Evans?" She whispered.

She didn't know why she was whispering because everybody was shouting and talking to get out of the classroom. "Yeah, that's Sharpay. You'll meet her soon enough"

"So Gabi? Have you seen any guys that you think are hot?" Her elder sister's voice entered her ears.

"Phoebe. Its first period. And plus. Why are you still here?"

Little did she know that she would see the guy of her dreams later that day.


	3. Jungle

**A/N: I'm backkk :) lol. Now I'm going to be updating this frequently I'm ahead on my chapters so updates should be up every other day! Unless the site ends up playing up again. Lol. This is sorta slow but you need information. And I've missed out of 2 weeks of reviews so make up for it when you've read this chapter :) Thanks! **

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"Today I had a thought. What if I... what if I had never met you?"

- Carrie Bradshaw Sex and the City

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"Gabriella". Phoebe called after her. God hadn't she gone home yet? It was 12 o' clock, the beginning of lunch and she hadn't gone home. Fucking great.

The annoyance was rising in her blood stream. She didn't know why she was making such a big deal out of this but she was. Her eyes closed tight in irritation. "Yeah Pheebs?"

Phoebe reached out her slender arm and placed her warm, toasty hands on Gabriella's leather coated limb. "You forgot this, this morning"

Gabriella watched at Phoebe's tight grin flashed at her before she placed her hand in her black high wasted trouser pocket and pulled an item from it and closed her fist around it. "Open your hand"

Gabriella obeyed her request and felt the cold metal touch her petite hand, opening her sweaty hands and suddenly remembered that she hadn't put it on this morning.

In her hand sat a white gold linked bracelet. The charms so clean they were sparkling in the chocolate spheres. She had always had a charm bracelet since she was a little girl. It was a gift from her mom when she was born and every birthday she had and Christmas they would add a charm to it. And on her 13th birthday it was a gift to her and she hadn't gone a day since without wearing it. She had always felt naked if she hadn't and couldn't believe she had walked out in such a nervous state that morning she had forgotten about it. And every birthday and Christmas she had still added charms to it to that day. Of course it would have looked too cluttered and tacky if she would have worn all of them so she adjusted and changed them occasionally.

"Thanks" Gabriella smiled and held out her boney wrist for Phoebe to fasten it.

"No problem. I picked it up this morning and I was gonna give it to you when you were in class but you rushed out so. Anyways I'm going home now so, want me to pick you up? After school?" Phoebe questioned.

"Um, yeah that'll be fine" Gabriella responded distantly and further down the corridor she could see the outlines of Chad and Taylor walking down the corridor.

"Gabriella" Taylor's deep voice called down the corridor before they both came to a halt at the two. Great. Now Chad was going to think her sister was hot and he would tell everyone and they would only talk to her because she had a 'hot' sister.

The two stopped infront of Gabriella and her sister. "Hey. You remember my sister Taylor right?"

Chad furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and Gabriella didn't know whether he was confused thinking that her sister was called Taylor or how Taylor had met them but she would have told him that right? Taylor nodded her head slowly and smiled at the elder Montez. "Chad this is my sister Phoebe. Phoebe this is Chad"

"Hi" Phoebe greeted enthusiastically at the male standing before her.

Chad matched her actions and smiled brightly at the 25 year old. "Hey"

Good sign. Maybe Chad wasn't as bad as she thought he would be.

"Gabi, I'm gonna go sweetie. I'll see you after school okay?" Phoebe coaxed before pressing her thin lips onto Gabriella's cheek and made the 'mwah' sound, a giggle erupting from Gabriella's throat.

"Okay. I'll see you later". She fare welled her sister watching her walk down the long airy corridor.

"And I'm gonna go too, you know what hoops is like if I'm late for a workout" Chad explained and Gabriella's thin eyebrows narrowed in confusion. _Hoops? _What kind of a name was that?

"Alright. See you later" Taylor smiled knowingly and let Chad press a kiss to her baby smooth blushed cheeks. "Come to my locker with me?"

Gabriella nodded. Anything would be better than walking around the school alone. It resembled a somewhat jungle. There were so many different kinds of people walking around like the numerous different numbers of animals that would roam the jungle. The school was so big it felt like it was never ending to her. The corridors were so long. Like how big a jungle would be and lastly, everything was red. Blood red and the white writing resembled something that you would write when using a stencil. And it reminded her of how everything in a jungle would be green. That's what east high was to her.

A jungle.

The lockers were all the same, white with red 'east high' or the 'wildcat' drawn on them, until out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of pink. Actually, who was she kidding it was like pink had cornered her and slapped her in the face. It was so different to the others. Shocking pink. Normally she would have found it tacky but it was, _intriguing. _Taylor pinned in the combination of her locker and the door swung open on its hinges.

"Whose is the pink locker?" She asked distantly, she didn't even hear the tapping of the metal heel against the hard tiled floor. She didn't see the petite figure walking towards her and Taylor from the other direction and she didn't hear the...

"It's mine" Gabriella's small frame jumped to look at the source of the voice.

She had never seen anything like it. From what Gabriella could tell was around 5"3 but she was never a good judge.

The heels she was wearing stood around 2 inches from the floor. But what caught Gabriella's attention was that everything she was wearing contained pink. Pink snake skin boots rose up to her calf. The same material created the skirt she was wearing which wasn't too short but not too long either. It pleated and it showed off the slender thighs that were underneath.

A white blouse covered her top half, cropped just above the elbows. The same shade of dark pink that was on her skirt and boots housed a strip on the sleeves of the girl's blouse.

Around her neck she was wearing an attractive chain, necklace. That had all different shapes and circles and of course was pink. Gabriella's chocolate spheres moved up to the blonde's face. Her nose was long and slender and curved out at the tip. Her eyes were brown. Light brown, like a light chocolate, a few shades lighter than Gabriella's.

The hair on her head was long. Really long. A golden blonde, honey blonde. It was loosely curled and it went to just below her rib cage. It was gorgeous.

"Gabriella, Sharpay. Sharpay Gabriella" Taylor introduced without taking her eyes from the locker which she was rummaging around frantically in.

"Hi" The honey blonde beamed brightly. Her teeth were perfect. In fact, everything about the girl was . Perfect. Whom Gabriella now knew was Sharpay.

"Hey" A wide smile crossed her face and she saw Sharpay looking her up and down, making her shift uncomfortably.

"Oh my god. You're bracelet's amazing" She said enthusiastically and grabbed onto Gabriella's arm and stared at the bracelet intently. Gabriella didn't know whether to take her seriously or not. Weather she was lying and really just being bitchy. But Taylor was a nice girl right? She wouldn't be like that.

"Thanks" Gabriella responded and felt Sharpay shifting the white gold around her bony wrist to look at all of the charms.

"What is it? I mean I know what it is but where did you get it?" Sharpay rambled and Gabriella let a soft giggle tickle the back of her throat.

She didn't want to give too much away because they would just ask about why she didn't live with her mom or something but what could it hurt to tell her something. They were friends right? "I've had it since I was born and my sisters buy me charms for it every birthday and Christmas"

Taylor didn't seem to be acknowledging what the two were talking about and Sharpay was staring at the charm bracelet in awe. "Holy shit that is so adorable. I wish my parents would have done something like that for me"

She smiled tightly and Sharpay let go of her arm which solemnly fell down her side.

"So Tay, I saw Tara this morning. She had this skirt on that was right up her ass and a shirt that basically showed everything" Gabriella's black eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Who was Tara? Was she getting involved in a bitchy crowd and she was going to be hated?

To shake her from her thoughts there was a loud slam causing both of the girls to jump and Taylors normally calm face looked irritated and annoyed. "Don't fucking talk about that skank"

Curiosity surged in Gabriella's blood stream. "Who's Tara?" She asked in a small timid tone.

Taylor sighed deeply and lent her back against the metal lockers. "She's just a fucking whore"

Gabriella was taken aback by Taylor's way of talking. Around 2 minutes ago she thought Taylor was a well mannered young 'adult'. Of course Gabriella did use that kind of language when she felt it was needed.

"Tara went out with Chad. And Taylor thinks that there's still something going on" Sharpay explained without unlocking gazes with Taylor.

"Do you not trust Chad?" Maybe she was out of line asking Taylor but hey, she was a nosey person.

"Of course I do. It's her I don't trust. They went out and she broke up with him and he was like hopelessly in love with her. So he was devastated, anyways we got together and ever since it's like she doesn't want anybody else to have him but she doesn't want him so she tries to come onto him" Taylor explained with disgust and irritation laced into her voice.

"Oh" Gabriella said awkwardly. She had well and truly put her foot in it. She didn't have a clue what to say.

"Tay, he's totally in love with you though. He practically kisses you're big toe whenever he sees you" Gabriella seemed to like Sharpay. Even though she had never quite met anyone like her, she seemed intriguing, and incredibly blunt. But Gabriella seemed to be intrigued by it.

"Yeah but it only takes one party where he gets shit faced and something happens right?" Gabriella could tell that Taylor was feeling awkward and her voice was starting to crack giving her the impression that it was hurting her alot more than she was letting on.

"Hey. Don't even worry about it okay" Sharpay reached out and touched Taylor's arm rubbing up and down comfortingly.

If Gabriella had to guess she would say that Sharpay and Taylor were best friends.

Distantly Gabriella could hear heavy footsteps on the floor coming towards them. Gabriella turned towards them and she could see two guys walking towards them. One tall and one quite short.

The tall guy had an oval kind of shaped head and was a few shades lighter than Taylor's skin tone. The small guy had black hair that she could make out distantly and stubble on his pointed chin. As they got closer she could see the tall one staring at the three of them. No scratch that, looking at Sharpay and she was looking at him in the same way. A look of lust boring from the pair of their orbs.

They didn't exchange words, the two guys just carried on walking to the end of the corridor, Gabriella following them with her eyes intensely. What had just happened? "Is that you're boyfriend?"

Taylor rolled her brown orbs and rested her head further onto the lockers. While Sharpay laughed at the black haired tanned clueless girl standing close to her. "Oh, sweetie uh-uh"

She narrowed her face in confusion when realisation dawned on her. Maybe they just liked each other? That had to be it right. Sharpay's hand latched onto Gabriella's thin arm and her brown spheres looked down to see a fully manicured hand with a giant pink ring on her first finger. "You ever heard of friends with benefits?"

Of course she had! She wasn't a fucking alien for god's sake! But she didn't want her new 'friends' which she felt like they were, to think she was awful by screaming at the two of them. "Yeah"

Sharpay looked knowingly at her, with a tight smirk on her face. "That's Zeke Baylor. He's on the basketball team. We've been seeing each other for around 6 or 7 months"

So basically they had been meeting for a quick fuck for the past 6 months without committing to the other. "Oh.....I see.. right"

"Don't act so smug Shar, he might not be around forever" Taylor chimed in, and Sharpay sent daggers her way.

"Why would you say that?" Her high pitched voice questioned quickly.

"Shar, honey. He's been asking you out for the past what 6 or 7 months and you've said no. He might get pissed and.... I'm sorry to break it to you" Taylor commented

"Miss Mckessie. Miss Evans. Stop talking about my basketball team and tell me where if you have seen Mr Danforth, or Mr Baylor.... Miss Evans?" A deep voice entered her ears.

She turned to look at him and he looked like a teacher. Well he was a teacher undoubtedly. Except he was wearing a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a polo top. And she knew that he had heard probably just about every word that Sharpay and Taylor were just telling her.

So in conclusion to what they had just said, Sharpay and Zeke were just 'fucking' and he had been asking her out and she had been saying no. Strange. Very, very strange.

"Um, Zeke just walked down the corridor with Jason and Chad left around 5 or 10 minutes ago sir" Taylor stated firmly at the teacher. He was around 35 onwards. No older than 40 though. Oh and he had funny hair.

"Thank you. And what's your name Miss?"

Her whole body stiffened in fright. Had she done something wrong? Was he going to tell her not to be with the two girls she was with? "Gabriella. Gabriella Montez"

"I thought so. Welcome to East High Miss Montez" The man said as he walked on down the corridor.

"Who wa..?" She started to say but the two girls shook their heads rapidly and latched onto Gabriella's arm in a link.

"Come on" Sharpay instructed and they carried on down the corridor and through two double doors.

And there she was.

In the centre of the jungle.

It was awful. There were people running around left right and centre, the noise was overpowering. It was intimidating. At her old school she would be sat in the middle of that, and she knew every single person who was creating the noise. Now the only people she knew were the ones sitting next to her.

"You alright?" Gabriella shook her spherical head and looked at the beams that were hung all over the walls. What intrigued her was the one straight opposite her, it was 3 basketball streamers. So now she knew the school was big on basketball? Right.

"Yeah. Yeah. There are just so many people" Gabriella reached for the bracelet and started to rub it in to comfort her.

"Come on" Sharpay smirked and lead Gabriella through the people to a table right at the back of the dining hall.

And then there were so many people sitting there. There were around 30 people surrounding just one table and they had all just stopped and looked around at the 3 standing there and then all stopped and carried on eating in the jungle.

"Gabriella. Taylor, Sharpay" The only face she could recognise was Kelsi. And she was beckoning the three over. Gabriella happily obliged and squeezed through the body's that were separating her from her destination. She finally sat down next to Kelsi and let a deep sigh erupt from the back of her throat.

"How's your first day going?" Kelsi smiled at the distressed Gabriella before returning to the pasta that was in the clear plastic box.

"Um... it's weird, y'know. I'm kinda not used to not knowing people and not talking to people and now you Taylor, Sharpay and..." She was about to finish but Taylor's deep voice cut her off.

"CHAD". At her old school if somebody would have shouted that loud it would have stopped the entire people in it, but everybody had just carried on.

Funny how different it was.

She narrowed her chocolate gaze to see Chad walking closer to them, but wasn't he meant to be at a workout? But then she saw it.

Absolute perfection.

Her breath was completely sucked from her lungs and her heart was slamming against her chest, so quick it might explode. He was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.

He was tall, much taller than her. But as she said she was never good at judging. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a white top with red sleeves. His face was rounded and his chin wasn't too pointy. The tan skin that was beneath was glowing, radiating towards her like she was drawn to him.

His golden brown hair was messy, but adorable. It was cut around his face, shaped around his eyes. His eyes. It was like staring into perfection. But of course he wasn't looking at her. The colour was so... electrifying. It was like a piercing blue, an azure shade. Like she was staring into the ocean, hypnotizing, mesmerising.

Suddenly her first day was getting so much better. The view of perfection only had to be matched by a stunning name. If she was his mom and his dad she would be so proud to have produced such a son like that.

He was walking with Chad who had just looked in her direction. Her eyes quickly jumped sizes too big, she didn't want to be caught looking at his friend. No way. She checked her chin slyly for any wet pools of saliva. Well he was that amazing.

Chad finally got to his destination and rested his hand on Taylors shoulder. The only question surfing through Gabriella's mind was where was Mr Perfection? Oh there he was, he was stood talking to that tall guy. Zeke was it? Sharpay's 'fuck partner'

"Hoops" Chad beckoned the perfection towards them. She quickly tried to curl her stray tendrils around her little finger without anyone noticing her trying to look even remotely presentable for Mr. Perfection.

Wait, hang on a minute. Hoops? Her mind suddenly cast back to what Taylor and Chad were talking about. So he was the obsessive work out guy. Well it showed. The muscles beneath the white shirt he was wearing were so defined and what she would give to have those muscles around her. If his name was hoops, which she highly doubted he could pull it off. With a face like that he could pull anything off.

"What happened to the workout?" Taylor called over the noise. Gabriella was pretty sure it would be quieter at a Nirvana concert.

"Ask him" Chad replied before pressing a kiss to Taylors midnight hair.

Gabriella looked and saw Mr. Perfection looking around and his almost black eyebrows furrowed and narrowed in confusion as if to say. _Who the fuck are you?_ But he almost stared at her. Looked at her, like he was shocked or something. Shocked there was a new girl hanging out with what seemed like the jocks. Well any group he belonged to had to be popular.

"Troy? What happened to the workout?"

Troy. Troy.

It was an unusual name but it went with the way he looked. He was unusually beautiful. Like he had made a deal with the devil for good looks and he had been given what he got which was absolutely earth shattering. But the name was almost sexy.

Like a hero from a fairytale she would have read when she was little. Like a knight that would rescue the princess from the big bad world.

She only wished she could be his princess.


	4. Learning More

**A/N: I hope you don't hate me for this! And also the updating a day after but I can't help it. I'll regret soon though. But I won't be able to update tomorrow so aren't I kind? Lol! So anyways let me know :) **

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"My buds are here! I love my buds!"

Buffy Summers – Buffy The Vampire Slayer

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"You're house is gorgeous" Sharpay told her slowly and in a low voice as if she would speak any louder the house would suddenly turn 'ugly'.

She had started East High on the Monday and now it was Thursday, and she had settled in okay. She was beginning to get used to the jungle and all of the people in it, more so that she didn't have any choice. She had come to the conclusion that no matter how much she wished she could be back in San Francisco it wasn't going to happen.

"It's so cosy Gabriella" An exasperated Kelsi informed. Gabriella had invited Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi around to her house after school to discuss their music project.

"Thanks" She let out a small chuckle and let the girls take off their shoes. "Do you guys want some coffee or some juice or anything?"

"No thanks" Taylor and Kelsi chorused.

"I want some juice" Sharpay smirked and held her hand high in the air to volunteer.

"Come on. I'll take you into the kitchen, you can come if you want" She beckoned for Taylor and Kelsi to follow them but they stayed behind and turned left into the living room.

Once they had gotten into the kitchen Sharpay jumped up onto the yellow counter and watched Gabriella walk to the silver metallic refrigerator and pull out some lemonade. "Lemonade okay?"

Sharpay nodded her head solemnly. "Yeah lemonades great"

"Gabriella. I'm home" An older mature voice called from what she knew was the doorway and she knew it was the eldest Montez's voice.

"I'm in the kitchen" Gabriella yelled back and heard the echo of her footsteps on the floor followed by two little pitter patters.

"Hey" Alyssa grinned enthusiastically

"Hi, Lyssa this is Sharpay, and Sharpay this is my eldest sister Alyssa" Gabriella introduced and from the corner of her eye she saw Sharpay dive down from the counter in fright or nerves she didn't know which one.

"Hi, um I'm sorry for sitting on your furniture. You're house is gorgeous" Sharpay complimented and Gabriella saw Lucas walk in carrying pieces of paper.

"Oh, thanks. And it's okay about the furniture" Gabriella knew that Alyssa was being nice but she also knew that she would be cursing caused by her being such a neat freak.

"Hey little man" Gabriella cooed to her nephew who had a smile on his face. "Come here. I've got someone for you to meet"

Lucas walked over timidly to Gabriella and stood by her side. She crouched down to his level feeling the bones in her knees crack as she did so. "Shar, come here"

Sharpay succumbed to her request and crouched down at the pair's level.

"Lucas, this is Sharpay. Sharpay this is Lucas" Gabriella introduced for the second time and she saw Sharpay smiling brightly at the 2 year old.

"Hi" Sharpay beamed enthusiastically in the way you generally would talk to a 2 year old. "I like your jacket" She felt for his black jacket and shook it to indicate what she meant.

"I think he likes you" Alyssa's voice entered her ears, a proud smile evident on her face.

"He's just the cutest" Sharpay complimented and Gabriella lifted Lucas from the floor into her awaiting arms.

"So how'd the search go?" Gabriella asked and Alyssa sighed deeply.

"Are you're other friends here too?" Gabriella didn't know whether she was avoiding the question or not.

"Yeah" She responded and felt Lucas pull onto the strands of the black curled hair.

"Well we can't exactly have a conversation when you're friends are in there. Come on we'll go in the living room" Alyssa beckoned and began walking into the living room, Gabriella picked up the glass of lemonade before following her.

Walking into the living room she saw Taylor and Kelsi relaxed on the couch making a lazy smile splash onto her face. She had only known them 3 days but she had felt like she had known them for a life time. There were no awkward silences they all just got along. Well she got on with the three of them she obviously knew they were close before she moved there.

"So how'd it go" Gabriella asked before she placed Lucas onto the floor and relaxed onto the arm of the chair that Sharpay was sitting in comfortably.

"It went okay" Alyssa referred to how she was hoping to start a business in Albuquerque, she had always had her heart set on opening a club and before the family moved they decided that they were going to pursue their dreams, and Gabriella couldn't have been more supportive for Alyssa to open her own club or a restaurant. "They showed me a few places and I've got some pictures here" She explained and grabbed the pieces of paper from Lucas. "Tell me what you think"

"Is this for a club?" Gabriella questioned before Alyssa nodded her head in response. "I'd drink here"

Alyssa raised her eyebrows in surprise and shock of what Gabriella had just come out with. She let a chuckle vibrate from her mouth. "If I was old enough"

Her elder sister nodded. "I thought so. So what do you think?"

Gabriella drew her focus onto the pictures, one was spacious, the bar was centred and there was plenty of vacant space around it and the other wasn't so spacious, the bar was in the corner and Gabriella could imagine that if people were to go there it would be a tight space and a great sweat bath.

"The first one" Gabriella handed back the piece of paper into her sisters hands.

"I was thinking that too" Alyssa agreed silently and smiling at the younger Montez. "So how are the songs coming along?"

Gabriella raised her eyebrows. They hadn't even attempted it. "That's what we were planning to do"

"I see. I'll leave you guys to it then. Do you want any snacks?"

Gabriella looked around to see Sharpay looking up at her sending her a silent signal with her eyes bulging from her spherical face. "Um, yeah please"

Alyssa grinned enthusiastically at the four girls and placed a hand on her stomach in comfort to her unborn child. "Okay sweetie, Lucas come on buddy"

* * *

An hour had soon passed by and Gabriella was laid lazily on the laminate flooring eating the cookies that Alyssa had made for the four girls.

"Okay, scratch the whole doing one each song. I think we should do all 5 together" Gabriella suggested and watched from the corner of her eye Sharpay placing her forefinger and thumb on the bridge of her nose as a result of stress.

"Genius" Sharpay beamed enthusiastically. "Are you sure that's allowed"

Gabriella let a small laugh erupt while her stomach vibrated silently. "Meh, It's my sister. She'll bend the rules for us"

"Okay so can we just like take a break now" Taylor's drained voice asked her.

"Of course" Gabriella shrugged her shoulders loosely and rolled back onto her butt to sit facing the other three girls.

"So Gabriella, we've been thinking, and we want you to come to a party with us tomorrow night" Sharpay offered. She knew that they probably wouldn't have wanted to because it was only her first week at East High and she might have felt kind of awkward.

"Who's party?" Gabriella tried to dance around the question but she just wanted to scream yes!! It would be a good opportunity to stare at perfection, assuming he was going.

She had been at east high for almost a full fucking week now and she had been sitting with Taylor, Sharpay and Kelsi and Chad and the rest of them and Mr. Perfection whom she now knew as Troy Bolton wouldn't talk to her. He hadn't talked to her. He had looked at her making her feel uncomfortable but he had shown no signs to talk to her.

She didn't exactly want him to say will you come to bed with me right now? Well she wouldn't have said no, she was beneath him anyways but she thought that he would have been kind enough to make her feel welcome at the jungle. But no, nada. No signs of Troy ever talking to her.

And it depressed her to no end.

"Um, some guy on the football team. That's what Troy told me anyways" Sharpay informed her and immediately her ears perked up and her heart started beating rapidly just at the sound of his name.

God how pathetic she was.

What she would give for him to talk to her. Just a fucking acknowledgment. But who was she seriously trying to kid, he was far too good for her.

But friends wouldn't hurt right?

"Minor teeny weeny details" Sharpay laughed sarcastically. "So you're up for it?"

What would it hurt? It was just a party. And there was a deep want inside of her to go even more so because Mr. Perfection was to be there. God she wasn't even calling him by his name it was Mr. Perfection. She was actually kicking her insides. "Sure, why not?"

A playful smirk cropped up onto the blondes plump lips. She smacked her perfectly manicured hands together in a clap as if to 'celebrate' that Gabriella were to be going to the party with them.

"So you're coming to the basketball game then before right? I'll pick you up and then you can come to my house bring your party clothes, go to the game go back to my house and get changed and then we... party" Taylor explained simply. "Oh and you guys can stay at my house afterwards"

It seemed like a plan. Especially if she could sit or stand in the bleachers and watch Mr. Perfection run around sweat collecting on his god forsaken body. Looking at his toned legs. That's how she imagined them to be. He wouldn't have skinny scrawny legs. They would be toned and muscular and what she would give to wrap her calf around his.

Okay now that was pathetic and completely NEVER going to happen.

"Gabi?" Taylor questioned. She must have been fantasizing about Mr. Perfection for god knows how long because the three of the girls were staring at her like she was an alien.

"Yeah. Yeah. I'm totally there" Gabriella grinned and picked up another cookie placing it into her mouth.

"Perfect" Sharpay felt around in her jean pocket and pulled out what Gabriella had learned was the baby pink version of the Blackberry that she had paid ridiculous amounts of money on.

In the few days that Gabriella had been at East High she had found out that Sharpay was stinking rich, though she hadn't been to her house yet, it was something on her to do list but she had learned that she lived in a mansion with alot of servants and butlers as a result of her mom and dad not really being there for her and her brother who was named Ryan. Was it Ryan?

"So Kels. How's things with Jase? Still as dry as Ghandi's flip flops?" Sharpay questioned while she pressed away at her cell.

Kelsi smiled at her statement but Gabriella could tell that there was irritation buried deep into it. "You could say that. Anyways never mind my relationship what about yours?"

Sharpay smirked coyly while she still tapped away at her cell. One word. Zeke.

That was all Gabriella could put it down to.

"I don't have a relationship" She stated simply. "It's just simply a sexual relationship"

Her black plucked eyebrows narrowed in confusion. Weren't they the same thing?

"Sharpay, you love him. Why is that so hard for you to admit?" Kelsi asked irritatingly. Clearly they had had this conversation before.

Sharpay hid her milk chocolate spheres behind her wary eyelids. And from what Gabriella could tell Sharpay had given the same answer before.

"Yeah you're basically in a relationship. How many guys have you kissed or let alone looked at in the past 7 months?" Taylor interrogated and Gabriella could sense the tensions rising.

"And how many girls has _he_ kissed or lucked at in the past 7 months" Kelsi fired back.

Gabriella thought it would be best not to get involved. It was Sharpay's decision right? It was what she wanted to do? And it wasn't her place she had known them what 3 days? She couldn't even think about giving relationship advice. But like Sharpay said. It wasn't a relationship was it?

"What do you think Gabriella?"

_Shit. _

Sharpay's head suddenly switched to Gabriella who was now biting her lip so hard she thought the skin was going to burst and blood come pumping out like a water fountain. "I... um. It's not my place"

"Gabriella. You can say what you want. These 3 have been pounding me about this for oh I don't know.... 7 months. And you're our friend now so it'll be good to have someone else going on at me about it" There was disappointment evident in Sharpay's tone and Gabriella knew that it was probably tearing her up more than she was letting on.

She was completely throwing herself in at the deep end here but what the hell. Like Sharpay said. They were friends right? "I guess that if you do really love him and that's your way of showing him then that's your prerogative. And even if you don't then it's your choice. As long as you don't get hurt then then it's your choice"

Sharpay reached over and pressed her hand to Gabriella's thigh. "I love this girl. I really do y'know that"

Taylor smiled knowingly. "Yeah okay so maybe it is your choice"

Sharpay lowered her eyebrows agnostically at her best friend.

"Okay it is your choice" Taylor began again before Sharpay's high pitched utterance butted in

"A full 100 percent?" She asked sarcastically

"Right totally, utterly, completely your choice. But he totally worships you, and you're the same no matter what you say. So why not just make it official? If another girl even looks at him you completely go psychotic and he's the same. Remember the whole Jimmy thing?" Taylor referenced. Who was Jimmy? What happened? So many questions running through her mind.

"What happened? Who's Jimmy?" Completely kicking herself again. All of the questions completely flooding out.

"Just before summer, Zeke and Sharpay had this huge fight it was at this party and Sharpay thought it would be funny, to flaunt herself over Jimmie Zara who was a sophomore at that point and she was a junior, and Zara has been in love with her ever since! Anyways, Zeke got so mad he broke 3 of Jimmies ribs and Troy had to hang out with him and his friends for a week so he wouldn't press charges" _Her knight in shining armour_.

"It shows that he's willing to fight for me" Sharpay almost boasted. "Look I admit that was wrong and at the time it was so _not_ fun. But looking at it now, it is kinda fun"

"You were crying your eyes out screaming Zeke no" Kelsi described, so maybe Sharpay was one for the drama?

"Yeah but that shows how much he cares" Sharpay sighed and Gabriella knew that she was drifted off into that night.

All of the signs were pointing towards Sharpay and Zeke should have been together but like Gabriella said it was her prerogative.

"Anyway enough of my nonexistent relationship, Kelsi cheated" Gabriella's deep brown spheres almost jumped out of her head like you would see on a tom + jerry cartoon when you was a child.

"Kelsi. Call me out of line but that really doesn't seem like you" She knew she was probing at uncharted territory but she wanted to be friends with them and being friends with people meant that you knew things about them right?

"Oh my god Sharpay!" Kelsi let out with a tinge of distress and irritation. Oh no. They didn't want her to know. Well Kelsi didn't.

"What Gabriella's our friend right? Who's she gonna tell?" Sharpay did seem to be warming to Gabriella which did comfort her in some weird way.

"I know but... okay Gabriella I know that it's not like me but it was a total moment of weakness I really didn't mean for it to happen and you know what? I feel like that's why me and Jason have been so dry lately because I've felt so guilty and we were meant to be on a break when it happened" Kelsi seemed to justify herself to Gabriella which made a comforting smile arise on her blemish free face.

"Hey I was kidding okay. I totally don't know anything about yours and Jason's relationship to judge" Gabriella said honestly guilt rising in her stomach.

"Oh please Kelsi that's what a guy would say to justify his cheating. You saw friends right?" She was totally messing with her Gabriella could see it in her milk chocolate spheres.

Kelsi opened her mouth to say something and then closed it. But again opened it again. And then Gabriella saw her tongue touch on her thin lips.

"Kels, I'm sorry" Sharpay reached over and touched Kelsi's black linen covered legs.

"Who was the guy?" Gabriella questioned and reached over and grabbed her glass sitting on the carpet.

"Ryan" It was barely audible but it caused the liquid in the back of Gabriella's throat to clog and a cough forced itself from shock out of her mouth.

Her deep brown orbs were jumped out of her head. Again. "Ryan. As in Sharpay's brother Ryan?" The three girls nodded their heads, Sharpay's and Taylor's so much faster than crimson faced Kelsi.

"Don't sound so shocked Montez" Sharpay joked. "So are you gonna tell him?"

Kelsi looked down to the floor and then back up to meet the three chocolate gazes of her Taylor and Sharpay. "I can't. It's just so not me y'know"

Taylor reached out and rubbed Kelsi's upper arm soothingly. "I know. But you can't help how you feel"

Sharpay pouted slightly her hand rubbing through her blonde hair awkwardly and Gabriella saw her suction her right cheek into her mouth. "Who do you see yourself with in a year's time?"

Kelsi sighed deeply and wiped away a stray tear from her porcelain face. "I don't know. But being honest. I don't think it's Jason"

Gabriella felt a coating of sorrow wash over her petite frame. From what she had learnt about Jason in the past few days was that even though he wasn't the sharpest tool in the box Jason did like Kelsi if not loved her but from the conversation they had just had she could sense that the feeling wasn't really mutual.

"Again it's not my place but I wouldn't be in a relationship if I wasn't happy" Gabriella explained.

"Speaking from experience?" Kelsi asked gingerly.

Gabriella looked down at the floor and took another drink from her glass the cold liquid tickling down the back of her throat soothing down into the pit of her flat stomach. "That's a whole different conversation"

The air suddenly became a little thicker and Gabriella could tell that they were all wondering the same question. What had happened? "So what can I wear to this party tomorrow night?"

Taylor smiled tightly sensing Gabriella's shiftiness and change of subject.

"Anything"

At that moment she made a mental note to herself. Anything that would make her look at least remotely attractive to Mr. Perfection.


	5. Once Upon A Time

"Why do you want to do this?"  
"Because I love her, okay? I love her."

Jack & David Just like Heaven

* * *

Her nerves were shooting through the roof.

She kept rushing to the toilet because of it.

Was she going to look okay? Did she look too dressed up? Did she look too casual?

It was an East High party, the first one she would ever go to. She didn't know why she was making a big deal out of it, but it was... her thing of course.

The one thing prying at her was the fact that Troy Bolton was going to be there. Mr. Perfection. He was going to be there. She wanted to look at least presentable.

A full 24 hours had gone by, and he still hadn't said a fucking word to her. And god it was driving her crazy, like she had said NUMEROUS times!

She had packed various different outfits into bag so Taylor could help her pick one out so she could look at least appropriate.

"GABRIELLA" A sudden soprano yelled her name.

"I'm coming!" Gabriella reached for the white bag that was sitting near her bed and lifted it onto her boney shoulder. She felt the sudden weight on her shoulder which almost made her fall sideways onto the wooden floor.

She walked down the stairway and saw Taylor decked out in white and red completely. She had a red scrunched shirt on with short sleeves that fit her curves and stuck to her frame perfectly, a pair of white sweats that had a red E on the right leg showing off her smooth legs and a pair of red pumps on her feet. And she was wearing jeans and a pink vest with a black cardigan. And her hair was loosely curled.

"I'm dressed wrong right?" Gabriella asked before she got to the bottom of the staircase.

Taylor scrunched up her pointed nose and tilted her head to the side a couple of times. "A little bit"

Great! She was dressed wrong already. What about the party? She was so going to look awful. She needed guidance. More than guidance she needed serious help! And she hoped that Taylor Mckessie was going to be the one to help her.

"Help me" Gabriella propositioned and ran up the stairs hearing the echo of Taylor's footsteps behind her.

She opened the door of her bedroom quickly and ran into her closet. Throwing clothes out left right and centre, she knew this was out of nerves but she didn't even have a clue what she was looking for.

"Honey calm down" Taylor reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

Gabriella stepped back and closed her eyes inhaling deeply to calm her nerves. "I think I need a drink"

She laughed lightly and still rested her hand on Gabriella's shoulder. "You can have plenty at the party. Look just let me have a look. Go sit on the bed"

Gabriella stared blankly at her new close friend. Funny how close you could get to some people in what 4 days? Well she had known Taylor a whole like 12 hours longer. "Go for it"

Gabriella obeyed and breathed in deeply sitting down on the soft cushion of her bed.

"Right. Wear this" Taylor held out a white blouse kind of dress that cut just above her knees. "And this red sweater. And then you won't need a jacket" Taylor explained and handed her a red button up sweater. "Right do you have some accessories and shit?"

Gabriella pointed out her right hand to the box on her chest of varnished drawers. "Red hair band" She threw the crimson silk hair band with a bow on the side of it. "And the bangles you have on are fine"

Gabriella soon got changed and found that she did look kind of East High themed. "Oh and do you have any red shoes?"

"I have white?" She questioned with a frown evident on her face. Why the hell hadn't she been more prepared?

"They'll do. You're still East High spirited" Taylor smirked. "And this way. You don't even have to get changed for the party. I'm not and I don't think Shar is so we'll go all East high"

Gabriella smiled tightly. "I don't know why I'm so nervous"

Of course she fucking did! She wanted to make a lasting first impression on the basketball captain; well she was pretty sure she already did that. She didn't even know what she wanted!

"Meh. Me neither" Taylor extended her bare arm and grabbed onto Gabriella's crimson covered arm. "Come on. We're so gonna be late"

Time had soon passed and Gabriella had found herself sitting in the bleachers with Taylor, Sharpay and Kelsi. And everybody else was of course kitted out in red and white. She shuttered at the thought of Taylor not helping her with her clothes she would have looked like a fucking clown.

Her stomach was tied in double knots, triple knots infact it felt like it was ready to vomit from her mouth she was that nervous. It was like she could feel like something was going to happen. Something bad. As if on cue there was an eruption of screams piercing through her ears and everybody bounced up onto their feet.

"WELCOME TO THE EAST HIGH FIRST PRE FRIENDLY GAME OF THE SEASON. WELCOME ON YOUR VARISTY TEAM THE EAST HIGH WIDLCATS" The booming introductory voice informed. And she immediately was watching out for Troy and how incredibly beautiful he would look in his wildcat uniform.

Through all of the screaming and whistling and shouting she could hear the bouncing of the basketballs on the spherical floor. And then she saw him. Well his back but she could identify him a mile off. Fuck, how sad was she?

He threw off his white jacket onto the side of the court and continued bouncing around the court with the ball bouncing freely and naturally from his hand, like it belonged there, like he was born to do it.

As if in slow motion his gorgeous head turned towards the bleachers and searched, as though he was looking for someone. His perfect azure eyes fell onto the four girls and a smile grazed onto his face before falling freely. He had to be glad that his friends were there supporting him right? Meaning Sharpay Taylor and Kelsi.

Troy bounced freely over to Chad who turned to look at the four girls. He was talking about them. Butterflies settled into her stomach. Which was stupid because he wasn't talking about her was he? He would never do so. Chad's face broke into a beam and his left eye squinted down as quickly as lightening at Taylor. Taylors face erupting in a tight smirk and waving her hand at her boyfriend.

"Damn Mckessie you have him trained good" Sharpay played.

Sharpay was wearing a deep red coloured ghost kind of t shirt. It was oversized and hugged to her perfect figure, well perfectly. She was wearing a white cami underneath and her hair was in pigtails curled loosely.

She looked gorgeous.

"Fuck you" Taylor shouted nudging Sharpay in the stomach.

Sharpay smirked tightly before the buzzer went off.

And the game began!

There was 2 torturous minutes left on the buzzer and Gabriella had gotten into the game alot more than she thought she would have. Troy was running around and all of the sweat had collected and his hair was matted to his head and god, he looked so sexy. Her breath was hitched into her throat just looking at the god forsaken body.

His body had been everything she had imagined. Although she couldn't see what was beneath the east high wildcats jersey whenever the shoulder muscles tensed she couldn't help but feel her heart skip a beat at how unbelievably gorgeous they were.

1 minute left and the spherical ball had just left Chad's hands to travel across the hardwood floor into Troy's hands. He travelled down the court with the ball and Gabriella could see his breath hitched into spasms, as his chest was heaving violently.

30 seconds.

She was on her feet as were the other girls watching his performance as he ran down the court beautifully like a ballet dancer performing with such grace.

The wildcats were down and all they needed was to put this ball in the basket and...

The crowd suddenly erupted into pandemonium. Taylor smashed her body into Gabriella's and wrapped her arms around her in a celebratory hug. Gabriella beamed into the hug and glanced onto the court to see that both Chad and Troy were looking in her direction.

God the butterflies really needed to calm down.

She was sitting in Taylor's car. Her chest heaving violently. Nerves again spurting through the roof. Her head in her hands. The car was still moving and she didn't have a clue where she was going. She was totally in Taylor's hands.

"Tay? Are we driving back to your house?" Gabriella questioned in a small voice.

"Chad's going to drive us. Because I usually take him home but we decided to trade tonight so getting drunk? I think so" Taylor laughed "You okay?"

The car pulled to a halt on the sidewalk. The house was nice. Small but nice. She could see red and white plastered over the front garden, streamers and body's. Clearly people started early at East High. "Uh-huh. I'm good"

The acid was burning in her throat. Troy was going to be here. Why the fuck was she being so nervous and uptight about it, DUH because Troy Bolton was going to be there. He was a god. He had to be a god reincarnated in human form.

"So you ready to come to an East High winning party?" Taylor coaxed after she had turned the ignition off she faced her body in Gabriella's direction.

She sighed deeply and closed her eyes. She could do this. She could get totally wasted at this party and then live to regret it the next morning. It's what high school was all about right? "It's now or never right?"

Taylor flashed her white teeth at Gabriella and placed her hand on Gabriella's upper arm. "That's the spirit"

She manoeuvred her body from the car and began walking up the path, Taylor infront of her swung open the door and she was greeted by the pulsating beat of the music throughout the house. The haze of smoke clouding her vision. It even reminded her somewhat of home.

The parties in San Francisco were always like this. Wild. Smoky. Everybody was absolutely hammered and she had always hated it. Well not the getting wasted part. Just the smoky part. She would always wake up the next morning her eyes stinging after the hazy clouds of invisible smoke had caused damage on her eyeballs.

"Taylor. Gabriella. Taylor Hey" The deep booming voice called for the two of them, she reached for Taylor and turned around only to be greeted with Chad, he took his place behind Taylor and placed his arm around her protectively and as if he was flaunting to everybody else that she was his.

"Gabriella. You want a drink?" Taylor almost bellowed over the music and everybody else's voices.

"Um. Yeah sure" She replied.

Taylor turned her body and dangerously placed it on Chad's his hands reflexively falling to the small of her back while she whispered in his ear. He nodded rapidly and looked in Gabriella's direction.

"Come on kid" He reached out for her hand and her eyes jumped in size. Where was he taking her? Was he abducting her? "You can come with me while Tay gets you a drink"

Realization dawned on her petite frame and she nodded in understanding. "Sure"

Chad grabbed her dainty wrist and took the lead to guide her through the heaps of people that didn't even notice that she was there. Thank god. That was the last thing she wanted was to be noticed.

She managed to be lead from the crowd and let a breath of relief escape from her lips and she continued to follow Chad until she was then stood with Zeke and Jason.

But no Mr. Perfection?

Okay she really had to stop calling him that.

Disappointment had washed over her like a shower would when she realized that she might not see him. All she wanted was to dose up on his incredibly gorgeous features and then she would be okay for the night.

"Chad. Did you see Kelsi?" Kelsi's boyfriend asked Chad. Chad just shook his head and pursed his lips onto the red cup that he was holding.

"No man sorry" He replied and Gabriella was frantically looking around at her surroundings.

"Hey Zeke?" Zeke leant his body up towards the source of Chad's voice. "When you were going out with Taylor"

What? This was completely new information. Her ears pricked up at the sound of the conversation.

"Did she play the trumpet or something? Because God, she's strong in the lips" Ew. Completely uncalled for. Her face scrunched up at the thought of Chad fantasizing over Taylor. Clearly they had been together a while and obviously they had had sex but she didn't know that Zeke and Taylor had had a thing.

Zeke's face screwed up in disgust but Jason had a hand on his stomach to stifle the laughter that was coming from his throat.

"Dude" Zeke signalled for Chad to shut up.

"You went out with Taylor?" Gabriella called to Zeke, and he shut his eyes weather it was in annoyance she didn't know.

"**It was freshman year. Okay. And it was for like 2 weeks. And for the record Chad I don't think Taylor has ever been a part of a band" Zeke attempted to set the record straight but Chad was laughing uncontrollably and didn't seem to care that Taylor's new frie**nd was standing there.

"What are we laughing at?" Taylor questioned obliviously and placed her arm around Chad's waist, with her drink in one hand and another red plastic cup in the other. "Here"

Gabriella held out her hand and grabbed the drink and took a drink from it. The alcohol burned down her throat and she could tell it was already seeping through her body. Gabriella smiled and raised her eyebrows to see if Chad was going to tell her.

"Nothing babe" Chad grinned and held his arm around Taylor's shoulder.

"Hey Taylor did you see Kelsi?" As if on cue Kelsi's small frame came gliding from all of the people. "Never mind" He walked towards Kelsi and she gave Taylor a worried look and she bit her lip silently before leaning up to whisper something in Jason's ear.

"Oh no" Taylor said loudly and then silently kicked herself when Chad leaned down to her level.

"Oh no what?" Oh no only meant one thing. Kelsi was going to tell him.

Taylor released herself from Chad's grasp and went to speak to Gabriella when a pull forced her from her steps and she went stumbling back into open space. What the fuck had just happened?

She looked around and saw Sharpay standing behind her. Taylor followed and all three turned in together to talk.

"We have a major problem. Kelsi's gonna tell Jason" Sharpay took the words right from Gabriella and she was sure Taylor's mind.

"She told you that?" Taylor whispered. Gabriella only hoped that Chad wasn't hovering over them listening assuming that he didn't know about it.

"Yeah she told me on the way here. She was sat there quiet the whole time and then she just said you know what I'm gonna tell him. And I couldn't say anything she just got out of the car and started walking into the house. And by the time I'd got here they were halfway up the stairs" Sharpay finished and Gabriella was sure that she hadn't taken a breath since she started the sentence.

"Do you think he'll break up with her?" Gabriella's loud voice asked the blonde standing next to her.

"Fuck knows. But he's gonna be devastated" Sharpay called and Gabriella took a sneaky look to see that Chad and Zeke and... Holy shit he was there. Troy Bolton was there and they were all looking in the girl's direction.

"Shar there's nothing we can do. Until she comes down and tells us what happened" And with that Taylor turned away and Gabriella nodded in understanding along with Sharpay and she followed them over to where Troy, Chad and Zeke were all standing, Zeke's eyes jumping with delight as soon as he saw Sharpay moving towards him. But she didn't stand near him and she didn't let him put his arms around her like Chad was with Taylor.

"What were you guys talking about?" It was the first time she had ever heard his voice and she thought she was going to faint. Even though the alcohol stench was evident in his breath his voice was unbelievable. How could one person get so sexy?

She would never know.

"Never you fucking mind Bolton" God she only wished she could take the tone Sharpay had just had with him.

Troy had a sexy smirk on his face at Sharpay. He held up his angelic arms innocently. "You wanna shoot me now or...?"

Sharpay narrowed her eyes on the basketball captain. "I need a drink. Gabs come with me?"

Gabriella nodded her head profusely. "Sure"

The basketball captain looked at her intently before staring down as Gabriella started to walk away. And she could feel two azure spheres penetrating into her small frame as she walked away. Or she hoped it was.

An hour had passed and Gabriella felt herself sitting outside with a distraught Kelsi, with a comforting arm wrapped around her shoulder and feeling her body vibrate beneath hers. "It's okay tell me what happened" Gabriella didn't have a clue but Kelsi being distraught obviously didn't mean it was good.

The alcohol had taken over her blood stream and she knew that if she stood up now she would inevitably fall on the floor, but somehow she managed to focus on Kelsi. Her new friend.

Kelsi hiccupped. "Take some deep breaths. It's okay" Gabriella attempted at soothing her.

The petite girl wiped her eyes and smudged the remaining make up that was on her face. She took a few deep breaths. "I told Jason....... He said that....h-he said that h..he.. had thought d...d..different of me... and... that.... h..he.. never wanted to talk to me...a..ga...again"

Gabriella's lids shut reflexively. "I'm so sorry"

Kelsi rested her head on Gabriella's chest "I... deserve it" She inhaled

"Hey you don't deserve it. You can't help how you feel" Gabriella slurred a little but she meant every word. She had never been a big hit with the alcohol.

"Kelsi" She didn't even have to lift her head up to know who was talking to her. Well Kelsi.

The way he walked was just so sexy as he took a step and sat down next to Kelsi. "Jase told me what happened. You okay?"

Kelsi took a deep breath. "Do I look okay Troy?" She squeaked.

Troy put an arm around her and Gabriella pulled hers away and took a drink from the plastic cup next to her.

"It'll be okay. He'll come around. I promise. Hey listen, why don't you go inside straighten yourself up and I'll drive you home" Kelsi sniffled and took a look at Troy with her tearstained eyes. God why was he such a gentleman. So kind.

"Okay" She took in a few deep breaths and Troy gave her a comforting smile. "Thanks Gabriella"

Gabriella smiled lovingly. "It's okay"

Kelsi rose from her sitting position and walked back into the house.

And then there were two.

"So is there any other reason that you're sitting outside" Gabriella shook her head rapidly. He couldn't have been talking to her. There was no way. But there was no-one else standing there.

A sudden wash of confidence glazed over her and the butterflies were flying around her stomach and poking into the lining of the skin threatening to break out into the September air.

She smiled blissfully. "So the stranger talks" He seemed to be staring at her blankly, almost as if he was intimidated. "I was always told not to talk to strangers"

He went to open his mouth to say something but the confidence was overpowering her completely. "I'm Gabriella Montez"

He seemed to smirk while he looked at her up and down as if he was taking her appearance in. God she had to stop her imagination. It wasn't going to get her anywhere.

"I know who you are. I'm Troy Bolton" He introduced himself.

Gabriella managed to stand up and put on the sexiest smirk she could ever muster. It was so unlike her. "Well I guess we're not strangers anymore. I'll see you around Troy Bolton"

And with that she stumbled her way back into the house unaware she had left Troy Bolton absolutely dumbfounded.

And little did she know that was going to be the start of the best thing that would ever happen to her.

* * *

**A:N/ I am keeping up my end of the bargain guyss and updating every 2 days how cool am I! Let me know your thoughts though. Don't worry its getting there though hang in there with me! The reviews I have been getting make me smile :) **


	6. Expectations

"That girl is named Gabriella. And she's very nice."

Troy Bolton - High School Musical

* * *

She felt like someone had decided to lift her head from her shoulders, place it in the middle of a motorway and let rush hour traffic flatten it and after that it was lifted back onto her shoulders and she was left with the aftermath. In other words it was called

A hangover.

A big awful, fucking one at that.

She could barely remember alot of the previous night after she had spoken for the first time to Troy Bolton. And what a fuck up she had made that. As if she called him a stranger? What? Who does that? Well she did and she was pretty sure that she could never show her face in East High again, or she would have to have a face transplant and make everything about her different so he wouldn't think she was freaky.

Which she was.

Taylor had thrown up last night and Chad had to carry her into the house while helping Gabriella stumble in. Thank the lord Taylor's parents weren't there otherwise she would have been more embarrassed to face and not Troy Bolton.

God she was such an idiot.

Taylor had stayed at her own house while Gabriella was walking through the house now from what her family had called it 'the walk of shame.'

"Spill" A calm utterance muttered from behind the newspaper.

Gabriella shut her eyes tight and felt her face flash crimson and the sound of the voice made a pulse appear in her head.

"There is nothing to spill" She whispered as if it was a crime to speak louder.

Cheryl lowered the newspaper that she was holding. "You're wearing last night's clothes, you're hairs sticking out in all the wrong places, you are carrying your shoes in your hand and you're whispering because your head is thumping so much. Good night then?"

Damn her sisters for knowing her so well. She let a nervous chuckle vibrate from her lips. "You could say that"

Cheryl narrowed the glasses that were resting on the bridge of her nose. "You're still whispering. Sit. I'll make you some coffee"

As Cheryl rose from the chair Gabriella took her place in the chair she was sitting in, resting her head in her hands.

"That bad huh?" Cheryl questioned and Gabriella raised her heavy head that was fighting back unconsciousness.

She didn't know what time they had gotten back to Taylor's last night but she was guessing it was late. She hadn't even bothered to get changed into her night clothes when she had gotten back last night, and she had literally brushed her teeth and grabbed her back and came home that morning explaining why she was still wearing the white dress that wasn't so white anymore A text from Chad to Taylor had woken them both up and she wasn't grateful for it reading something of the lines of _you two owe me. I hope you're suffering _

Damn him.

"No. It was good actually" Gabriella knew that deep down if she lived with her mother and father then she wouldn't have been able to complete the 'walk of shame' this morning.

"How good?" Cheryl questioned and poured the coffee into the mug.

Cheryl placed the cup of coffee infront of Gabriella's hazy vision. "So good I flirted with Troy"

She squeezed her eyes tight and pressed the white porcelain mug to her lips and felt the steamy coffee burn the back of her throat to soothe her hangover. "Mr. Perfection?"

Gabriella winced at the nickname for him that she had told her sister. Well did she flirt with him? Of course she fucking did she smiled sexily and she walked away swaying her hips as sexy as she could. Funny because usually Gabriella didn't do sexy. Weird how he brought it out of her. "Yeah"

Gabriella's sister held up her thin hand to her mouth to control the laughs that were originating. Gabriella playfully whacked her in the arm. "Relax. I've told you that he probably didn't talk to you because he likes you"

She shook her heavy pulsating head slowly. "Who ever came up with that okay is a liar. You can't think that a guy likes you because he ignores you"

She bent her aching arm and lifted the mug to her lips and let the liquid dissolve into her stomach. "Yeah whatever. Have you ever heard treat um mean keep 'em keen?"

Gabriella's waxed eyebrows narrowed. "Troy's not treating me mean to keep me keen. He's got every single girl in the school kept keen"

Cheryl's mature smile widened. "I wanna meet this kid. If he's anything like you say I think we can start buying the wedding dress now"

Jesus, how embarrassing. "I'm going to my room"

And with that she left the remainders of the mug resting on the wooden table, and picking up the shoes that were placed on the tiled floor before starting to walk out of the kitchen and continue her walk of shame until she got to her room. "Oh Troy... baby" She heard Cheryl's mocking and she turned on her feet to see Cheryl kissing her hand.

Jesus, how embarrassing.

She began to rapidly walk up to her room when she was greeted by Phoebe walking down the stairs with a spring in her step and a wide grin on her face, narrowing when she saw the youngest of the Montez's walking towards her. "Rough night?"

"Troy....baby" Cheryl called after her while the familiar ringing of the doorbell echoed throughout the house.

"Gabriella Montez, stop right there" Annoyance rose in her petite frame. Cheryl's feminine voice called after her.

"What so you can just irritate me again and shout things that are totally uncalled for" She ranted and stomped down the stairs looking right into the doorway she saw the blonde.

"No, actually. Quite the opposite. Sharpay is here" Cheryl mused with the door open a tight smirk threatening to widen as wide as Gabriella's spheres had.

Gabriella reached into the depths of her midnight tendrils rubbing the skin uncomfortably.

She looked so fresh.

Not the tiny bit hungover. It wasn't even a school day and she was still East High spirited. Her hair was tied loosely at the side of her head and her hair was still loosely curled from the night before. She had little application of make up on her face but she still looked as pretty without it. And she was wearing a hot pink fuchsia tracksuit with the hood up over her head. And in tiny diamantes was the East High Wildcat.

"Well don't you look.... who am I kidding you look like crap" Sharpay called as she stared at Gabriella's ill body intently.

"Come in" Gabriella invited sighing deeply and continuing to walk up the stairs. She could hear the distant mumbles of Cheryl and Sharpay exchanging small talk.

When Kelsi, Sharpay and Taylor had been at her house the other day they had met the remainder of Gabriella's family and they all seemed to like them.

Gabriella opened the oak door and strolled in throwing the shoes on the floor.

"Gabriella uh sweetie. What the fuck happened to you last night?" Sharpay asked and she sat on the soft cushion of Gabriella's bed.

"I don't have a clue. Where did you go anyways?" She referenced to her vivid memory of Sharpay not being there after she had humiliated herself into the next century with Troy Bolton.

"Me and Zeke went back to his house" Sharpay announced and Gabriella's face screwed up in disgust.

"Right. Of course you did" Gabriella said shaking her head rapidly and like it was totally obvious which it should have been but her fucker of a hangover blocked her from that.

She walked over to her closet to look for something to wear and began to loosely tie her hair from her face.

"I told Zeke I loved him" Sharpay blurted out quickly. Gabriella spluttered on her own spit and felt the scrunchie snap in her hands.

Gabriella turned around slowly to be greeted by Sharpay's now tortured frame sitting on her bed sheets, her eyes closed tightly. "But you do right?"

Sharpay let a loud breath erupt loudly from her throat. "Yes" Her eyes jumped out of her skull at what she had just said as did Gabriella's. "NO. Fuck.... I like him very much"

Gabriella opened her mouth to say something but reached up to scratch her forehead in thought. "Isn't that the same thing?"

Sharpay ferociously gripped at her blonde hair in frustration. "Okay. So here's the deal, if I admit that I'm in love with him to you that's nothing bad okay, which actually feels good to get off my chest. But god it's so complicated"

It was so weird that Gabriella had no friends here this time the previous week and now, well last night she had Kelsi crying uncontrollably onto her shoulder and now Sharpay was giving her the ins and outs of her relationship. Not relationship? It was so confusing. Whatever IT was.

"You can tell me if you want" Gabriella mumbled loud enough for Sharpay to hear.

"Okay so you have to promise this goes no further right" Sharpay bent her hot pink covered legs beneath her as if she was getting comfortable to tell Gabriella the tale. "Okay so because my parents haven't been around when I was little so I like grew up without a lot of love from them but obviously you love your parents so I did... so much. Don't feel sorry for me. I'm over it. So now it feels like I can't give out alot of love to Zeke because I'm not gonna get it back"

Gabriella felt the strings of her heart pull. And she thought she had had a bad time of it, Sharpay had grown up with practically with no love from her parents at least Gabriella had a family that loved her, even if she didn't have a mom or a dad there with her to help her face everyday life.

"Sharpay I've been here a week and seriously it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Zeke is head over heels in love with you" Gabriella tried to get through but realized that Sharpay was like herself in one similar way, they were both stubborn.

Once Gabriella Montez set her mind on something then that was it, nobody or nothing could ever change it. Sharpay raised one elbow as she contracted the muscles around her lips making a kind of wrinkled up pout. "I just guess that I want him to prove it to me"

Gabriella smiled tightly; she now knew why Sharpay wouldn't commit to Zeke. Maybe Zeke wanted just to ask her out so the whole school wouldn't think he was just using Sharpay, but Sharpay wanted Zeke to prove how much he loved her and ask her out from love, instead of the expectations of everybody else.

"So did you speak to Kelsi?" Gabriella attempted to lighten up the mood of the conversation and Sharpay must have caught on because she highered her head and inhaled a deep breath, and lowered the hot pink hood that was on her head which revealed the honey blonde tendrils beneath it.

"Yeah. I called her this morning. She said that she was more devastated just because she said the look on Jason's face and the things he said to her, were enough to break anyone's heart" Sharpay's tone laced sorrow and Gabriella felt her heart tug at Kelsi's current situation. "But hey you can't help who you love right" She paused. "I guess on Monday we'll just have to be there for her y'know take her mind off things make sure Jason is on best behaviour"

Gabriella winced at the thought of Monday; her body tensed and became afraid.

The day she would have to face Troy Bolton.

* * *

There weren't many things that scared Troy Bolton.

The bogey man when he was little however was an exception. He would get his mom and dad to check under the bed and in the closest before he would go to sleep every single night. Only when he was around 6. He would lay under the covers with them peaked just below his eyes so he could definitely see that his mom and dad were getting rid of the bogey man.

Now 11 years later he had never been scared of anything.

Until he laid eyes on Gabriella Montez.

He had never been so scared of one person's beauty.

She was absolutely stunning.

Even though she probably didn't know it.

And even at the party on Friday night when he plucked up the courage to actually talk to her when she was drunk and she spoke back. The only thing he could muster was his name was Troy Bolton.

Fucking Idiot.

Everybody knew that his name was Troy Bolton and he even told her that he knew who she was. Real classy Bolton.

But she was just so beautiful that it scared him.

The way she walked gracefully, towards the table he was sitting at now. The way she walked with such power and elegance. Like her footsteps weren't even touching the ground.

It was if also in slow motion as he watched Miss. Stunning turn her head and the gorgeous black raven hair moved with her head the curls swiftly moving as she did so. And the honey sweet laugh erupted from her throat like it was the only sound he could hear in the cafeteria that Monday lunch time overpowering everyone else's conversations they sounded meaningless at the sound of her laugh.

It was the norm at East High that Troy Bolton could talk to any girl he wanted and get her to do whatever he wanted but when it came to Gabriella Montez he had to wait until she was drunk to even introduce himself. If he told the truth half of the girls that he talked to he didn't get her to do whatever he wanted. He wasn't like that. Sure he had had one night stands when he was drunk at parties and they never meant anything else but they were exceptions.

But that first Monday in the cafeteria when he had laid the sapphire orbs on Gabriella Montez's chocolate brown he knew that there was something different about her, something that lured him in. Something that made him just want to talk to her but he couldn't, like a magnetic force drawing him towards her but he didn't know whether to let it pull him in.

As Gabriella, Taylor and Sharpay had got closer towards them she sat directly opposite him but it was like she refused to look at him. But when she did and she caught him staring at her, the stunning face flushed a bright colour of crimson. Was that embarrassment he saw?

Her crimson flushed face was listening intently to something that Sharpay was telling her.

Gabriella Montez's face was so stunning, she wore little application of makeup unlike the other girls at East High, she didn't even need make up her face was just he couldn't even describe it. It was like Wow.

She bit into a rosy red apple she pulled the cell from her denim skirt pocket and lifted it to her ear. All of the noise droned out of the cafeteria and he could just hear her voice talking to whoever it was on the receiving end of the phone call.

God he would have loved to be on the phone t that goddess. Not in the sex kind of way, well he wouldn't mind but just to have a polite conversation and hear her sexy voice and her honey sweet laugh on the other end. Just the thought was enough to make the member between his legs stiffen.

And if the two pieces of flesh touched hers. Wow he thought he had just cum.

"_Okay. Yeah that's fine. I'll just go over after school and bring him home. Okay bye." _And with that she put her phone back in her pocket.

Great now she had a boyfriend. Well she was taking a boy home and he wouldn't have put it past any boy to try it on with her in the first week she had been there. Just because he couldn't pluck up the courage to try it on with her.

3 hours later he found himself sat on the bus on the way home. Yeah he had a car but it was in for servicing so he was taking the bus home. The whole lunch hour had gone by and he still never found the courage to talk to her, he would look at her she would sneak glances and then look down blushing. Maybe she was embarrassed about talking to him on Friday night, but he was the one who was embarrassed. The only thing he could manage to say was Troy Bolton. What the fuck was that?

The bus stopped and he had to blink almost 100 times to see if he was seeing right. She was there, walking on the bus. His eyebrows furrowed. With a pram? Did she have a kid?

The courage was rising in his body as he was taking shallow breaths. He had to talk to her. He just had to.

He walked to the front of the bus and saw her talking to the boy that was in the pram. So that was who she was talking about on the phone. He was off the hook. She didn't have a boyfriend. His masculine hands grabbed onto the bar to hold him up right. "Hey"

Hey? What the fuck was that. Hey?

She looked up to the sapphire eyes and bit into her lip slyly but it didn't' go unseen by Troy. Was she nervous?

"Hi" She grinned and then handed a plastic bottle filled with juice into the pram.

Jesus Christ Bolton. What the fuck was he doing? He was noticing juice instead of focusing on the stunner before him.

"So were you hungover Saturday morning?" Jesus he had to do better at this.

She reached her hand up into the raven curls and a nervous laugh erupted from the back of her throat. "I was hoping you'd forgotten about that"

So she was embarrassed! "Ah. You see, I wasn't drinking so..."

Her teeth sunk into the bottom piece of flesh that was like heaven to him. "I'm sorry. And for the record yeah, I had a stinking hangover"

Troy laughed at her attempt at saying sorry. She didn't have anything to be sorry for. She would never have to apologize to him. Corny? Yeah he knew. "Comes with the package. And what are you sorry for?"

He was doing well. They were actually having a conversation and she seemed like a nice girl. Who was he kidding? She was sweet, she was funny. Well she hadn't actually proved funny yet but hey, who was he to judge? "The way I was. God, I should never drink again. You were being nice y'know introducing yourself and all and me" At this point she let out a laugh at her actions. "I totally cut you off called you a stranger and I walked away" She let out another laugh. "Who does that?"

Funny. She was funny. He laughed at her embarrassment. "Clearly you"

She laughed again and bit the piece of heaven. Was she just as nervous to talk to him as he was to talk to her? No. That couldn't be right."Right, can we start over?"

A ripple of relief washed over his masculine frame, now he was talking to her. Start as you mean to go on right? "Troy Bolton"

He extended his muscular arm to meet her thin ones, open handed so her hand could touch his. "Gabriella Montez"

Her thin hand slipped into the size of his and he almost had to jump back at the pleasure ripples that he felt. Just from a touch. He looked down at their shaking hands and she looked to be doing the same. Electron waves were surging throughout his body and as he let go of her hand. He wanted to feel it again. He didn't know what it was. But fuck, he wanted to feel it again. "So who's this little guy?"

He asked and placed his hand into the pram to tickle the stomach of the small child. His spheres met Gabriella's and there was an earth shattering smile. Was she trying to kill him? Just a smile and she could make him feel this good inside "This is my nephew, Lucas"

So she didn't have a kid. Well even if she did he wouldn't have not spoken to her because of it. "He's cute"

Gabriella's eyes locked with his and there was a twinkle in her chocolate stunning orbs. And it was if he got the impression that with them she had said so are you. But that was mental right? That would never happen. Not in a million years. He was so beneath her that she was in heaven and he was burning away in hell.

"This is me" Gabriella announced and began to manoeuvre the pram from the bay that it as in, he immediately moved to help her, a blissful smile on her face as she looked at him. "Thanks"

She walked down to the front of the bus and looked back as if she was taking him in. "I'll be seeing you, Miss Montez"

Gabriella's dazzling smile radiated beauty in his direction before she stepped off the bus.

"I'll look forward to it"

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews :) I read on the internet today that Zac proposed to Vanessa, so he might be officially off of the market now being engaged and all, maybe it's just a rumour I don't know but anyways keep the reviews coming! You guys are the best :) **


	7. Issues

**A/N: I know that I said I'd be posting every other day but I've been off college all day today so I've wrote 4 chapters so I thought I'd upload :) I hope you don't mind. Keep the reviews coming they make me smile :)**

* * *

But what if this isn't what I want? I mean what if I don't wanna live the way you live?  
Oh, don't be ridiculous. Andrea. Everybody wants this. Everybody wants to be us.

Andy Sachs + Miranda Priestly :The devil wears prada. 

* * *

"Dude you should see her sister. She is hot"

Even if she was hot she wouldn't be a patch on Gabriella Montez.

"I hear that she moved here because her dad was a drug addict" Troy had to laugh at that one. People had been trying to figure out Gabriella for quite some time now. But all he was bothered about was just talking to her.

It was a further 5 days later after he had talked to her on the bus that day and he loved every second of talking to her. She was kind, sweet and he was pretty sure she could get him to do anything she would have wanted him to.

He and Chad had just finished with practice and they were both going to Taylor's house and do some studying. But truthfully the only reason Troy was going and not being bothered about being the third wheel was that he had learnt Gabriella and Taylor were next door neighbours and being close to her just gave him butterflies in his stomach. His heart started to race faster.

Himself, Chad, Jason and Zeke were walking out of the gym back into the halls of East High where Taylor had just gotten done with a detention for getting caught kissing Chad against the lockers earlier that day.

"Dude. Don't be so stupid. She's hot though" Chad commented and he couldn't help but feel a shade of green haze over him. Chad had spent more time with Gabriella than he had. But Chad had more guts to talk to her, probably because he had a fucking girlfriend.

"Hey don't let Tay hear you said that" Zeke played and teasingly slapped Chad in the chest.

"What she is. Those legs. Fuck" Chad continued and Troy rolled his azure's under his eye lids. "Don't you agree Bolton?"

Fuck. What could he say? But then again Troy Bolton had never been scared to admit he thought some other girl was hot. But then again Gabriella Montez wasn't just another girl.

There was something about her that was just so different.

"She is hot" Troy almost felt guilty for saying she was hot. But every other guy was bound to think it right? Fuck she was absolutely stunning. "So anyway how's things with Kels. Cross?"

He quickly tried to change the subject hoping that no one would sense it. "Every time I see Evans I just want to fucking rip his face off"

Troy snuck a glance at Chad's face he had his eyebrows raised. Troy could sense the anger that was steaming from Jason. But hey. He couldn't blame him! "Why don't you?"

His spherical head turned around at Chad's comment. "Because Kels would kill me. Every time Evan's see's me it's like he cowers into the corner and god it doesn't feel right"

What the fuck did that mean? Troy knew that if he ever caught any girl of his with another guy he wouldn't think it didn't feel right for the guy to be afraid of him and he didn't think that he'd seriously be thinking about the girl if she cheated on him.

It was safe to say that if Troy Bolton's girl cheated on him, the guy would be well and truly murdered.

"What the fuck does that mean? It doesn't feel right?" Chad seemed to ask the question for him, the annoyance rising in Chad's blood stream also. Troy could just tell. The fact that they had been friends for so long.

"Deep down Evan's is a good guy and I know that if I did rip his face off his scrawny little shoulders then Kelsi would seriously hate me and really I just want her to be happy. I could see it coming" Jason explained and Troy actually felt sorrow towards Jason.

They had gotten along since freshman year and they had been friends ever since. Jason was such a nice guy and Troy knew what he meant when he said he had seen it coming. "What do you mean you saw it coming" Pity Zeke didn't know what he meant.

"When we were together it was like she wasn't really there, like um, she never wanted to have sex anymore and even when we were just talking she would just be like yeah, yeah. I know. She never called me and I know I may be stupid but I think I could tell when my girlfriend wasn't interested" Jason's voice sounded like it was about to crack and Troy could sense that he was getting upset with the conversation they were having.

The truth was that Jason had been in love with Kelsi ever since freshman year and he finally plucked up the courage to ask her out at the championship game last season.

"Hey babe" Chad greeted to his girlfriend with a beam on his face.

If you asked anybody who the happiest couple in the school was they would say Chad Danforth and Taylor Mckessie. They were complete opposite but opposites attract right?

"Hey" She said solemnly and leant further back into the lockers.

"We'll see you guys later. See ya Taylor" Zeke said to the three teenagers standing there.

"See ya dude" Troy replied while Chad was too wrapped up with his arms around Taylor looking at her with concern locked into his spheres.

"You okay?" Troy heard Chad mumble infront of his girlfriends face. And it was starting.

"We'll talk about it later" Taylor whispered back and pushed Chad's built frame from hers. "You alright Troy?"

Troy narrowed in his headlamps onto Taylor's face and saw the purple swelling under her eyes proving that she was exhausted. The white parts in her eyes were illuminated coral red. Maybe she had been crying. "Yeah I'm fine"

Taylor smiled slightly and nodded her head solemnly. "Good. I need to head to Gabriella's for a sec"

His heart was thumping but fluttering at the same time if that was even possible. Just at her name? God. "Okay that's cool" Chad's enthusiastic voice beamed before he put an arm around Taylor and began walking, Troy following behind them.

20 minutes later he found himself sitting in Taylor's car outside what he found the most beautiful house ever. Belonging to the most beautiful girl ever. Was that judgemental? Of course it was.

The car ride had been silent, every so often Chad would try and make a joke to try and lighten his girlfriends mood but the only thing that was racking through his brain at that moment was he was going to see inside Gabriella Montez's house, even if the walls weren't painted and the floors didn't have carpet or wood or whatever he would still think she was the most gorgeous girl in the world. Okay so now he was rambling.

"You just gonna sit there hoops?" Fuck. How long had he been sat there daydreaming about Gabriella's carpets? Idiot Bolton. Get out of the car, out of the car.

He folded his legs and jumped over the back seat of Taylor's car, and walked up the never-ending staircases and pathways until he met the front door and his muscular frame immediately tensed. He was at Gabriella Montez's house. He was standing at her door way. Focus Bolton. She's just a girl. But she wasn't was she?

Just as Taylor was about to press her dainty finger to the doorbell it swung open and a woman appeared. Dressed in a white t shirt and grey sweats, her hair was swept back from her face loosely and a headband guarding it from falling onto her face. She had dark skin like Gabriella and truth be told she was hot.

Troy lightly nudged Chad in the torso catching his attention. His afro bounced as he turned his head to see his best friend. "That the sister?" Troy mumbled, damn his hormones. But she was beautiful so why wouldn't he think her sister was. Assuming that was her sister.

"No but she's pretty hot too" Chad mumbled back discreetly as the woman closed the door rapidly but also let it close quietly.

"Hey Taylor. Sorry I really have to dash but Gabriella's in there she's in the living room if you just want to go in" The woman explained as she had her back turned and her car keys in her hand walking across the fluorescent green grass, backwards.

"Oh okay. Are you sure it's okay for me to go in?" Taylor plastered what looked like to Troy a fake smile to the woman who Troy really wasn't sure was. It couldn't have been her mother? She was around 24ish, he wasn't sure.

"Yeah, totally fine honey" The woman called and with that she jumped into the silver mini that was parked on the drive and keyed in the ignition.

Taylor carefully opened the door and walked inside. "Gabriella?"

Oh no. He was in her house. And it totally smelled like her. It was intoxicating. It was complete bliss.

"Hey Tay who was that?" Chad asked carefully and generally so Taylor probably wouldn't think he thought the woman was hot. But she was.

"That was Gabriella's sister" Taylor told him quietly and she turned the corner into the living room.

And there she was.

She was laid on the couch. Her slender toned legs were bent slightly and she was laid facing the three of them. Her lids were shut and her chest was rising and falling at a steady rate. Her thin, perfect body was covered by a blanket. Her left arm was folded tightly towards the right one causing her cleavage to squeeze together and Troy felt his manhood twitch at the sight of it. Her heart shaped lips were so kissable and pouted slightly as she slumbered.

She looked so beautiful. So peaceful.

"I can't wake her up can I?" Taylor whispered but Troy wasn't sure if she was asking them or herself. But he was going to answer anyway.

"Sure you can" Troy coaxed and Taylor looked around in his direction and sent daggers towards him. Clearly she was asking herself.

"Gabriella" Her gentle voice cooed. Gabriella didn't even stir. She didn't even flinch. "Gabriella"

Again nothing.

"YO GABRIELLA" Chad yelled and Gabriella's small body almost jumped from the couch and she would have been clutching to the ceiling. Her lids shot open and her body shot up reflexively looking at the three.

"Chad" Taylor scolded and whacked him in the chest.

Gabriella squinted a few times getting used to the light and stretched her limbs before she blinked again a few times before realising he was standing there. Oh shit. He wasn't supposed to be there. His body had completely frozen but she warmly smiled at the three of them before wiping to get the sleep from her perfect mocha spheres.

"Hey" Her raspy voice greeted and he couldn't help but feel his heart melt at the sound of her adorable voice. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I needed the instructions for the project but shit I didn't think you were sleeping" Taylor cursed herself as Gabriella rose slowly from the couch and swiftly moved her hands to her black tendrils adjusting herself, but she was staring at him the whole time. He was totally imagining that right?

"It's okay. And um it's in the attic I can go get it if you..." Gabriella began before Taylor held her hands up halting Gabriella's voice of angels.

"No. It's totally okay, we woke you so Chad and I will go upstairs and get it" Wait, hold up. _Chad and I?_ Meaning he would be downstairs alone with Gabriella.

"We will?" Chad questioned before Taylor turned to face him.

"Yes we will. We can talk on the way upstairs" Realization dawned on Troy's flawless features as he realised Taylor wanted to tell him the problem while the other two weren't there.

"Right we will" Chad confirmed and followed Taylor from the room.

As soon as the two love birds left the room the air suddenly got a thousand degrees hotter, he felt like he was in direct contact with the sun and she was staring nervously in her direction sinking her dazzling white teeth into her bottom puffy lip.

"Sorry about waking you. Chad's just... Chad" God Bolton. He was talking to what to him was the prettiest girl in the world, hence the nickname Miss Stunning, and he was talking about Chad. What the fuck was that?

Gabriella seemed to understand and let a honey sweet laugh roll from the back of her vocal cords. God he loved that laugh. "I'm getting used to Chad and his... ways"

Troy smiled his crooked smile at the beauty sitting infront of him with still slightly swollen eyes. "You looked cute sleeping."

Oh no. He had fucking gone and done it now. His eyes jumped in alarm at what he had just said and he looked in Gabriella's direction to see her smiling bashfully hiding her face into her shoulder. "Thanks. I think"

Thank god she didn't think he was weird. But he was only speaking the truth right? Why was he so nervous when he was talking to her? He didn't understand. "So what are you, Taylor and Chad doing then?"

Troy almost immediately felt a lining of guilt in his toned stomach. They hadn't invited Gabriella. How could he have possibly forgotten that? "Oh just some research at Taylor's, homework and shit. You could come if you want?"

Gabriella's eyes lit up with excitement but then fell. "I can't. I told Alyssa I'd watch Lucas while she went for her scan"

So Lucas was her nephew but was Alyssa the one he had just seen? Probably not because they wouldn't have left a baby while she was sleeping would they? "Oh. That's cool. Who's Alyssa?"

Gabriella shrugged her bony shoulders loosely. "My sister"

So she had two sisters right? "So how many sisters do you have?"

He couldn't control it. He wanted to know every single thing about her. "Fo... um three. And then there's my brother in law and my nephew"

Troy was so glad that Taylor and Chad weren't back yet. He was enjoying being alone with her... and just talking. "Must be crowded then"

Gabriella smiled brightly and then trailed her eyes into the distance. "Yeah but it's good, you're never alone so..."

Troy diverted his sapphire headlamps onto the pictures on the mantelpiece. It looked so homely. So cosy. So warm and inviting. "Don't you like being alone?"

Gabriella smiled again. God was she always so happy? He wasn't complaining though he enjoyed everything about her. "Does anyone? But no I don't. I'm so used to being around a big family so.."

She trailed off. He couldn't believe how open she was being with him. But he liked it. He liked it alot.

"Okay so who's up for studying?" Taylor reappeared and wiped her eyes swiftly and discreetly but Troy and Gabriella both exchanged a knowing look. Something wasn't right.

"You guys can stay here if you want? Keep me company" Gabriella silently pleaded. Now Troy had learnt she didn't like being alone he didn't want to leave her there.

How could he know someone for just over a week well nearly two and like them already. He knew he liked her. It was an understatement. He had never felt that way about a girl before. Well of course he had but this was different. She was different. "I'm in"

"Gabi why is this so hard?" Sharpay's high pitched utterance pleaded before she threw her body on the carpeted floor.

"Because you're thinking too hard okay, just think and idea's will come to you" Gabriella explained.

Gabriella Kelsi and Taylor had gone to Taylor's house the day after their 'study' session with Troy Taylor and Chad. They were currently narrowing it down to what the songs for their project were going to be.

"Okay so what's your idea's Gabriella?" Taylor asked her intriguingly with one eyebrow raised.

Gabriella had always learnt to tie songs in with what was going on in her life or other people's lives and in the past few days she had an idea in her head that was just itching to come out. "Right. Sharpay, don't hate me"

Sharpay raised her eyebrows in amusement and pouted slightly before slipping into a cocky smile. "I'm intrigued Montez, go ahead"

Gabriella inhaled deeply feeling the oxygen channel directly to her lungs. "Right so through my life, the way I've coped with stuff is writing down my experiences and feelings onto paper and making it into songs. Don't worry end of sob story. So these past few days I've been thinking and a melody has just popped into my head and coincidently it's about you Shar"

Sharpay's cheeks tugged into a tight smile. "Fabulous. So what's it about?"

Gabriella bit her lip nervously. A habit she had gotten into alot recently. "You're relationship with Zeke. I mean if you don't want then I can do something else"

The Barbie looked down at her hot pink nails picking some dirt out and letting it fall onto the floor soundlessly. "No. I think you should do it. It sounds..... Fabulous"

Taylor broke out into a clap. "So we have our first song, what's it about come on Gabs"

She had gotten so close with the girls it was untrue. Kelsi was still getting over things with Jason, they weren't talking but he wasn't giving her death glares in the cafeteria anymore. It was something but Kelsi was still feeling gloomy about it as she explained she wanted to be friends with him. But obviously she could understand why he was bitter about it.

"Um, it's about a fling kinda. I was gonna start writing but then I thought you might hate me so I now I'll get to work and we can get in the studio maybe Tuesday? If I can get round Pheebs" Gabriella explained in a small voice while playing with the white gold charm bracelet that sat on her left wrist.

"Yeah that's cool" Taylor agreed, nodding her head in understanding.

"So Gabi, I feel like we've gotten so close and not talked about you" Sharpay began. Oh no this was going to end up badly. Really badly. "Why did you move here?"

Oh no. Fuck. Gabriella think quick think! THINK! "Um we just wanted a fresh start I guess" _Lie. _

Gabriella's teeth were sunken so far into her bottom lip she did think it was going to pop. But Sharpay merely nodded in understanding. "Didn't you find it hard leaving your friends or boyfriend whatever? Assuming you had one?"

She ran her hair through the tendrils of her raven curls. "Um yeah it was hard leaving my friends but you know that's life. We still talk over the phone and stuff but and I had a boyfriend but we broke up about a month before I left" Okay that technically wasn't a lie.

"Why did you break up?" Taylor butted in but Gabriella knew she was only being nice and wanting to know about her past. Funny that Gabriella didn't really want like to tell things about her past. It was kind of a touchy subject.

Gabriella sighed deeply. "It was just a rough break up and me leaving was just gonna end things anyways so" And that was a half lie and half truth.

"Okay. So, there's another party on Friday you're coming Gabriella right?" Gabriella raised her solemn head guilt rounding through her blood stream as fast as light. "Troy's gonna be there"

Her eyes automatically perked at the sound of Troy's name. "What's that meant to mean?" She asked teasingly.

"Oh Gabriella he's totally into you" Kelsi blurted and Gabriella felt her spherical face blush a shade of crimson.

"He's so not. But yeah I'll come" Gabriella informed the girls.

"Fabulous"


	8. Revelry

**Disclaimer: I don't own girls aloud or the song fling or anything associated with it. **

**A/N: 3 updates in 3 days. I hope you don't mind! My fingers just keep going and going. BUT before you read this I STRONGLY recommend that you go on youtube and listen to girls aloud - fling and then you can see what the girls are singing to! Also I worked really hard on this chapter! So I hope that you like it. There is some parts that are boring but stick with it :) **

* * *

  
You know, sometime if we're ever really alone maybe we could talk about what happened between us. You know it's all a bit hazy to me now. It ended so fast.

Nick Parker - The Parent Trap

* * *

"So the way you sing it you have to like be casual but forceful at the same time" Gabriella instructed. "Try this, who's that hottie over there?" Gabriella sung casually infront of Sharpay's stressed out spherical face

"Right okay, okay." Sharpay confirmed to herself and inhaled deeply.

Gabriella had finished writing the song and they were currently in the recording studio before they would go to the party later on that day.

"Phoebe" Gabriella signalled and she pressed the black plastic material onto the cushion of her black hair.

The other three girls had liked the idea of the song and they were trying to make this perfect but Phoebe had told them that it was a first run and they could do it again if they had wanted. The rock/pop back track filled the sound of her ears. They had been recording for 2 hours now and Taylor had recorded all of the bits she would be singing Kelsi had also and the following line would be the last of Sharpay's. After they had finished the recording they were planning on going to Sharpay's to get ready for the party that night.

"Who's that hottie over there? Big bad boy with big bad hair" Sharpay sung perfectly down the hanging microphone.

The music faded and the sound of Phoebe's voice cut over. "Okay girls that's great you can go take five and then we'll do Gabi's bits"

Gabriella sighed and matched the other 3 girls in lifting the earphones from their heads and following them from the recording booth that they were in. Gabriella was the first to grab an ice cold bottle of water and feel it sooth down to her tense stomach.

Something was going to happen tonight.

She didn't know what she didn't know when but she knew something was and in a way she was praying it was something between her and Mr. Perfection. For the last time! She really had to stop calling him that.

"So Taylor. How's things with Chad?" Kelsi's timid tone asked before pressing a bottle of water to her thin lips.

The truth was that since their little disagreement in Gabriella's house, well she didn't know what it was and didn't really want to push things with her, things had been off between Chad and Taylor. He had been normal with her but she had been off with him. Just one word answers but Chad hadn't asked her about it as far as Gabriella was knew but like she said she didn't want to push it.

"Kinda bad" Taylor replied honestly and pressed her hand to her soft black hair trailing it through, straightening it down.

"Why?" Gabriella urged herself to ask.

"I didn't tell you about the other day did I?" Taylor asked and suddenly Gabriella was intrigued to know more.

"Nah uh" Gabriella shook her head solemnly in response.

"Tara, she was in my detention class and she just, she told me things about Chad like she told me that he had texted her and she showed me it I mean it was only an answer to a question she asked about the party last week but it still hurt y'know" Taylor explained.

Gabriella had seen Tara and she wasn't really that pretty but guys saw that differently right? She always walked around school in short skirts and low cut tops to flaunt off everything that she had. She had a good body Gabriella would give her that. She was as thin as a stick and she had curves in all the right places and Gabriella could tell that Taylor was jealous. But she didn't have any reason to be did she? "I'm sure there's nothing going on"

"If there is Danforth's balls will seriously be chopped off with an axe, pickled in a jar and sent back to him" Sharpay added making a chuckle erupt from each of their mouths. "Seriously Tay, stop worrying there's nothing behind it I promise"

Taylor sighed in defeat. "He said he'd drive tonight too so I can get wasted"

Sharpay smirked tightly. "Well that's good"

"Okay girl's breaks over. Um, Taylor Shar and Kelsi you can stay in here if you want and listen to what it sounds like" Phoebe propositioned and the other three nodded in agreement.

Gabriella's nerves rose. This was the reason she didn't pursue her singing. She got so nervous she would faint. She didn't like performing infront of people. Well this wasn't performing was it? Just singing a few lines for her close friends and sister.

You can do this Gabriella.

* * *

"Dude come on we've so gotta go" Chad pumped.

Troy was sitting in the driver's seat and Chad was in his hands. He could take him wherever he wanted so how come as soon as Chad said that Taylor was recording he just wanted to drive to see them. Well not so much them. Just her.

And now Chad was begging that they would go. He wasn't taking much persuading. "Fine" He pretended to hiss through gritted teeth but really his insides were practically diving into each other.

He knew he would be seeing her tonight but that seemed so long away. He wanted to see her now. If he could describe her as a drug, he was definitely becoming addicted. He just wanted to see her every day, all day. They had been speaking alot more and even sometimes flirting, only slightly though. He didn't want to push things with Gabriella.

"So what's going on with you and Tay?" Troy asked casually before he pressed his foot down on the break feeling the car halt infront of the traffic lights.

"Fuck, I don't know man. She's been so, distant lately" Troy and Chad had talked about it and Chad had told him how Taylor hadn't been 'there'. "I swear we had sex the other night and I swear she faked it"

Troy chuckled at Chad's exaggeration. "Nah that's just because you're shit in bed"

Chad's eyes doubled in size and he looked at Troy sending daggers his way, playfully. "And you'd know how? I'll have you now Bolton I have no problem giving my girlfriend IT. Unlike some"

Troy pressed down on the gas pedal and took away from the traffic lights again. "And what does that mean?" He asked teasingly.

"Dude; you and Montez have been dancing around each other for fucking ages. Just fuck her already" Troy knew Chad didn't mean it literally but God he would love to just fuck her, well not just. He wanted to be with her, know everything about her. Explore every inch of her skin. Taste every inch of her skin. Be inside....

But he was completely beneath her.

It would never happen.

"Chad" Troy shook his head disapprovingly at his best friend.

Chad beamed and giggled like a little girl at Troy's outburst. "I'm kidding but fuck man, you like her she likes you what's the problem?"

He was fucking scared that's what the problem was. But he couldn't tell Chad that. Not ever. "I think you should spend less time worrying about mine and Gabriella's nonexistent relationship and worry about satisfying your girl in the bedroom more"

And with that Troy pulled up in the car park where he knew Gabriella was standing in. His nerves were dancing in anticipation. He felt like it had been that long since he had seen her that he had forgotten how beautiful she was. But in reality it was only that lunch time. "Fuck you Bolton"

Troy opened the metallic black door and stepped out. Chad matching his actions and they glared at each other both threatening to beam at the other. "No Chad. You need to fuck Mckessie better"

Chad smiled quickly and let it fall in sarcasm. "Funny. Come on let's see if you can say more to Gabriella than hi" He teased.

Chad took the lead infront of Troy which he was glad for. If Troy showed up first then they would think he was just weird but if Chad they would think that it was actual want to see his girlfriend. Which it was really? Wasn't it? They ended up at a door that just looked important. There was a passcode on the door and a doorbell situated at the other side. "Well fucking ring the bell then"

Troy was completely thrown into overdrive his breath was becoming heavy and he felt butterflies in his stomach, well more like bats they weren't just dancing around his stomach either. They were violently ramming to the extent where Troy thought he would be able to see the wings making imprints on his stomach poking the hard skin out.

"Hey. Come on in. We're almost done" Phoebe greeted the two. Troy had learned that this was Gabriella's sister. Well one of them. And she was hot too. But like he mentioned how could he not find anyone from the Montez' women hot? It was impossible.

Troy and Chad followed the echo of Phoebe's footsteps along the carpeted floor and in the distance he could hear music. They were met in the room by Taylor Sharpay and Kelsi. Chad of course walked over to Taylor and wound his arm around her. "Hey" He heard her whisper.

But that wasn't what caught his attention.

What caught his attention was the voice of angels sounding through his ears. He turned his attention through the glass separating him from the girl of his dreams. She looked unreal. It was like she was a dream to him. Weird right?

Her voice was amazing. He could see in her tiny frame that she was nervous and it probably didn't add that he and Chad were there.

He was completely fixated on the goddess standing infront of him and he couldn't help but wonder what was beneath the clothes, what it would be like to kiss her two pieces of heaven what it would be like to touch her two luscious pert perfect sized....

And then he felt guilty for thinking of her in an impure way.

"It's just a fling baby, fling baby. Nothing more than a fling baby, fling baby" The words were coming from her mouth and he was so fascinated by her. He didn't want a 'fling' with Gabriella. Most girls yeah he wouldn't have minded but he wanted everything with her.

Then the music went off.

Gabriella placed the headphones onto the top of the microphone and stuck her thumb up signalling whether it was okay to come out or not, so Troy assumed. Phoebe pressed down on the button that as soon as she did so illuminated with bright light. "Gabriella that's fine you can come in now"

Gabriella smiled blissfully and walked swaying her petite hips from side to side as she did so. Her hands drifted into her hair. Then she opened the door.

He face fell in horror.

It was as if she had seen a ghost. The radiant colour dissipated from her cheeks and was replaced with a deathly white. Her whole body almost jumped in fright and came to a standstill. Her eyes were wide as if they were about to jump from her skull. She stared blankly at Troy as if he was the only person standing there. Gabriella chuckled nervously. "How long have you been standing there?"

His mouth was dry, she was nervous he could tell. The way her teeth were sinking into her bottom lip. "Not long" He whispered.

She solemnly nodded her head.

"Gabi, I don't mean to rush you honey but the longer we're in here the more it costs me money so... and by the way you know that the house will be empty tonight right?" Phoebe interrupted before holding her hand up signalling for them to go.

Since Gabriella wasn't going to be in that evening the family had decided to drive to San Francisco to see how people were getting on and see how things were, and Gabriella didn't want to go so she had arranged for herself to stay at Taylor's house so she wouldn't be alone.

"Yeah" Gabriella whispered and took the lead in walking out of the recording studio, not before looking at Troy and slyly moving her head to signal for him to come to her. He happily obliged and they were both walking side by side towards the doors leading him back into reality.

So much did he want to slip her hand into his oversized one, or place his arm tightly around her petite waste and pull him to her protectively. To have any kind of physical contact with Gabriella would be enough. "So, you're going to the party tonight right?"

Troy smiled his crooked smile before locking eyes with her.

"If you're going to be there"

* * *

She had been there a whole hour and he hadn't fucking shown up yet!

Where the fuck was he?

She was perched on the end of her stool in the kitchen with Chad and Taylor and her red plastic cup in her right hand. Weird how it wasn't an east high winning party but they still had the famous East High colours spiriting their parties.

"Didn't Troy say he was coming with you" A tipsy Taylor asked her boyfriend but maybe she was reading Gabriella's mind.

Taylor had informed Gabriella that Chad would be again driving the two of them home to Taylor's house like the previous party but the only difference was that Gabriella swore to herself she was going to remember the ride home and wasn't going to be wasted.

Chad immediately shot a glance at Gabriella after Taylor spoke. What was that? Her slender eyebrows narrowed in confusion. Why would he just look at her? She didn't get it.

"Yeah but he said he had some shit to do so he'd come on his own" Chad explained and pressed his lips to Taylor's forehead. Why couldn't that be Gabriella? Well not with Chad. With Troy, of course.

"Is he walking?" Taylor asked completely dumbfounded with her mouth hung open stupidly.

"I don't know Taylor" Chad replied with a tinge of irritation in his voice. Taylor wrapped her slender arms around Chad's shoulders and he tightened his grip around her arched back.

As if it was a total coincidence, time skidded to a halt. There was a shock pull in her flat stomach and she knew the butterflies were back. Her heart began to beat all the faster until it was slamming against her ribcage.

The heat in the room got thousands of degrees hotter and all the body's that were dancing were in slow motion and the perfection of his body wasn't slowing down any time soon. He wasn't dressed any out of the ordinary but he looked absolutely stunning. He was wearing dark denim jeans and a white polo shirt. But it brought out the earth defining shade of blue in his eyes. Gabriella was watching his legs stride to close the distance between the two. He halted infront of her and looked down into her coffee orbs. "Hey"

How lucky was she? He spoke to her before he had even said hi to his best friend and his best friend's girlfriend who he had known donkey's years before he had even known she existed. "Hi" She smiled.

She turned her neck to see Chad smiling at the two and Taylor was drinking something or anything she could get her hands on. "Bolton"

Troy smiled the famous smile she loved. Well she loved everything about him. Not love, but like Sharpay had told her, liked very very much. "Danforth"

The heat in the room was becoming unbearable. She could almost feel the sweat collecting on her face as his gaze wasn't shifting from her at all. He tilted his head down to stare at her more. "You wanna dance?"

Oh no. Troy Bolton did not just ask her to dance. The way all of the other people were dancing and he wanted her to dance on him like that. What was she going to say? Better yet why was she even thinking about it? She placed the plastic cup on the side where Taylor and Chad were standing and slid herself from the stool feeling the height difference at its best between the two of them. "Sure"

He held out his masculine oversized hand and she assumed it was to take her own. "You offering me something?" She attempted to flirt.

He laughed and reached his other hand up into the strands of his chestnut hair. Maybe he did that out of nerves? Was he as nervous to be around her as she was around him? "My hand"

Gabriella chuckled excitedly and placed her small hand in his and felt the burn of his skin penetrate right through into her blood stream and reaching her heart in record breaking milliseconds. The small hand fit in his palm and her fingers hung over the edge of the space between his thumb and first finger. He moved his hand so her fingers rested on his, fitting in between the gaps until he ultimately laced them together. The sparks were raging around her petite frame so much that she thought she was going to fall onto the ground. But everything would be okay if he saved her.

He took the lead infront of her small body and led them into the crowd of people. Pelvises were rocking into her, causing her to stumble but Troy's hand held her steady. They both finally found a spot in the middle of the floor and he held her out at arm's length. No way. He totally just wanted to do an 'arm' dance with her. Her brows furrowed in confusion but her stomach was jerking with rejection. "You wanna take it slow?"

The sexy confident side of her was overpowering the shy timid girl that she was so used to being; she bent their arms out to the sides and turned herself around in his built arms, dropping his hands momentarily. She backed herself up into his stone marble and couldn't even comprehend the sparks and feelings that were shooting through her body.

Troy's expert hands dropped down to her hips but before they did so he grabbed hers and threaded them on top of his hands. They rested perfectly on the bone of her hip or maybe just a little bit below. "Or not" He whispered into the crevice of her neck.

Her body was slung into a cosmic bliss as his hips swayed dangerously behind hers. Her breathing was becoming shallow at the sensations he was giving her. His hips picked up pace as if he was furious with her but it only caused her to stick her butt out dangerously into his groin and she could've sworn she heard a sharp intake of breath coming from his mouth. She swayed her hips faster but kept her hands laced in Troy's.

His muscles were contracting around her petite frame and his hand momentarily left hers and ran up the curve of her side. Gabriella's eyes closed at the feeling of Troy's magic hands running up and down her body. As she pushed her butt back into the curve of Troy's groin she could feel a sharp poke coming from Troy's.... No way! He wasn't! He couldn't be! She couldn't have! Troy Bolton was not hard. She had not made Troy Bolton hard.

But all she knew was that Troy Bolton was hard.

And somewhere deep down, she knew it was because of her.

His hands dropped dangerously lower and rested on her thigh and he lowered their bodies to the extent where Gabriella's thighs were aching from them being so low. But the bliss of Troy's body being pushed up against hers was killing the pain. Her eyes were opening and closing and her breath was coming in spasms and she could hear his sharp intakes for breath behind her.

The beat of the music ran through her body in vibrations so hard that she thought her body was going to be thrown all around the space where people were dancing but Troy's expert hands were holding her in place and his erotic breathing was condensing against the crook of her neck.

It only seemed like minutes they had been dancing but in reality it had been over a half hour. Her hand left his and curved around the back of his neck which slipped from the sweat that had collected. She began to play with the tiny hairs on the back of his neck, and he lifted the both of their bodies up to full length again. So much did she want to kiss him.

She could feel his neck crane to look over her shoulder down into the dip of her cleavage. Normally the shy side of her would have shuttered at the thought of any guy looking down into her cleavage. But tonight her shy side was shoved to one side and the other side of her was coming out. Like she was a schizophrenic. And it wasn't just any guy looking down into her cleavage. It was Troy Bolton.

He sighed deeply before leaning into the curls of her raven hair. "You wanna drink?"

No! Her insides were practically screaming at her! She did not want to have a drink! She did not want this to end. After all it wasn't every day that you got to grind your pelvis against Troy Bolton. But if she was going to be with him it wouldn't matter right? She turned her body around to look into his piercing blue spheres. They were locked with want and desire and lust. "Why not?"

Troy smiled contently at Gabriella and grabbed her hand and led her back through the oceans of people. It had been over an hour since they had walked out onto the floor and at the beginning of the night if someone would have told her she would have been grinding on Troy Bolton she would have laughed and said they were crazy. But it had happened and she couldn't have felt happier. As they ended their journey to the keg she thought that Troy was going to unlace their hands but he didn't.

His hand did momentarily leave her small one just to fill two plastic cups of she didn't even know what. He handed it to her and grabbed her small hand again. Through the smokey haze of people Gabriella saw the outline of Chad walking towards the two of them. But the expression on his face was completely different to when she had seen them the hour before.

Troy lifted the plastic cup with his other hand that wasn't holding Gabriella's and let the liquid burn down his throat. "You alright man?"

Chad lifted his hand and placed it into the springs of his afro. "I don't understand the female sex I really don't. What are these games women play? Because I'm telling you now Chad doesn't like them"

Gabriella smiled at Chad's little outburst before pursing her lips together and feeling the alcohol burn down her gullet and into her stomach.

"Oh no. It must be bad you're talking about yourself in third person" Troy joked and looked down to connect his eyes with Gabriella's and beamed down at her.

"Taylor checked out of my life and she's checking back to her house apparently" Chad sighed his face furrowed.

"What happened?" Gabriella yelled over the pulsating music.

"Tara's here. Taylor was talking to Zeke, Tara came over she started talking and then she like rubbed her ass up against me all trying to seduce me and shit. Taylor saw and told me to fuck Tara and then after I do that go jump off a cliff" Chad explained and his face was screwed up at the thought of Tara's body draped over his.

"Fuck. You told her it was bullshit right?" Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand playfully and subtly and Gabriella smiled brightly at his display of affection for her.

"She didn't give me a chance she told me that and then she stormed out and I went after her but she jumped in a cab" Oh no. Gabriella's insides were squirming. How the hell was she going to get home now?

"Fuck. How am I gonna get home?" Gabriella worried frantically and watched Chad and Troy laugh at her outburst and then she realized. It was probably the first time they had heard her curse.

"I'll take you home alright?" Troy offered. But where was Taylor now? She was going to be alone. In that big house of hers.

"No. It's fine. I'll go jump in a cab now, its fine" Gabriella sighed and Troy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Gabriella we'll take you home" Chad repeated.

Gabriella let her hand loose from Troy's and rested it on her hair squeezing lightly in frustration. "No its fine. Chad I'll call when I get home okay?"

Chad solemnly nodded. "If you go to Tay's. Tell her to call me alright?"

Gabriella sighed deeply before walking towards Chad. "Of course I will"

"Gabs, I'm not sure I want you going home alone" Chad's ringlets shook as his head did so.

"What? Chad I will call you as soon as I get home. If I don't call in an hour you simply know that this whole thing was good while it lasted" She joked before reaching out and touching Chad's muscular arm. "I will be fine"

Chad looked at Gabriella sternly, who then looked at Troy who shrugged his shoulders. "She said she'll be fine"

Chad continued looking at Gabriella and it made her smile contently at how caring he was over her and she hadn't even known him long. "Fine you can go but if you don't call the second you get home so help me I will..."

Gabriella placed her boney hand onto Chad's chest. "Not do anything because I'll be fine" She attempted to finish his sentence before he gripped his hand around Gabriella's toothpick arm.

"See you later" Chad grinned.

Gabriella turned her head to see Troy's face laced with disappointment. Maybe because she was leaving? As he saw her looking he quickly blinked and regained composure before revealing his shining whites at her in a smile. "You best call"

Gabriella smiled back at the most beautiful boy she had ever witnessed. "I'll call" She whispered. He looked down to her pouted lips and smiled at her.

20 minutes later Gabriella found herself handing over the dollars to the cab driver, stepping outside and she didn't know whether to go to Taylor's house or not would she want to be alone? Would she be asleep? Gabriella grabbed the cell phone from her bag and began to text her friend.

Hey. Just checking you're okay. Text me back and call me in the morning xx

Gabriella began to walk up the steps to the house when her cell phone began to come to life in her bag. Her whole stomach froze in fright. Her heart was slamming against her chest and she dropped her bag to the floor.

The front door was open.


	9. Breakeven

**A/N:** **I tried really hard on this chapter but for some reason it just wouldn't come out right, not the way I wanted it to anyways! So if it suffered then I'm really sorry! I hope you all like it anyway and you're reviews make me smile :) **

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Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone  
I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run  
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess  
It's a love story baby just say yes

Taylor Swift - Love Story. 

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Her whole body was shaking with fear, her bag left forgotten on the cold pavement floor. It was as if all of the other houses had shrunken into the ground and she could only see her own. Maybe Taylor was there? Maybe her sisters were home?

She wasn't going to wait around to find out who was in the house.

She wanted to run. She wanted to pick her long slender legs and run right back to the party where she was previously grinding up against Troy Bolton. But her legs wouldn't move. They were merely stuck to the whole body was paralyzed in its spot. And she wasn't daring to move.

She couldn't comprehend what to do. The acidic were pouring from their pools down her porcelain face her breathing was getting shallow. To say she was panicking was an understatement. She was probably overreacting right? There was no one there.

She could have left the door open when she went out that night but she knew that was rubbish because she made sure she had closed the door. She was definitely sure.

As if on cue to bring her from her thoughts she could hear vibrations against the pavement, her shaking body lowered itself to the pavement and lifted the object from her bag. She slid the phone up and held it to her ear. "C...Chad" She managed to sob from her mouth.

"Gabriella, what's wrong?" Chad's voice asked frantically with concern laced into his tone.

She could still hear the beat of the music, down the phone line but it suddenly dissipated she assumed that Chad had gone outside where there was no music.

She tried to take deep breaths but she couldn't her lungs seemed like they were being cut from circulation and she let her body loosely roll onto the pavement. "C..can...yo....you come to my h...house ple...please?" She stuttered.

Gabriella could imagine Chad's face narrowed in confusion and she was thankful for once that Chad hadn't been drinking otherwise she would have been positioned on the step rocking back and forth to comfort herself. "Gabriella calm down tell me what's wrong"

He wasn't listening to her. Why couldn't he just magic himself here? "Chad... p..please just co...come"

She could hear Chad sighing on the other end of the phone call. "We'll be there in 10 minutes"

Wait? What the hell was that? We? Who the fuck was he bringing with him? But why the hell was she thinking.

Should she go in the house? What if some mad axe murderer was in there?

10 minutes turned into 10 days and 10 days worth of tears and sobs before a cab stopped at the bottom of the garden and two figures appeared from the car. Gabriella saw Chad's shadow throw some dollars through the car window before she looked to the other side to see a godlike figure running towards her.

Even though she was distraught and scared for her life she still got the butterflies and shocks she always did whenever she saw him. She knew he had been drinking but the look on his face was one of pure concern.

The two of them ran towards her like their lives depended on it before a fresh round of tears drowned her face. They were tears mixed with relief that someone was here to help her. "Gabriella!" Chad's voice boomed and forced her to look up to him.

Troy took her side and sat beside her watching her intently. "What happened?" He asked in a small voice to coax her into calming down.

She inhaled shallowly a few times to try and calm herself. "I...I got ou...out of the...the cab... an...and the...fr..front... door was op..open"

Chad's eyes suddenly diverted to Troy's as Troy's did to Chad's. "Did you check inside the house Gabriella?"

She carried on breathing shallowly as it was coming in spasms, the alarming sobs causing her body to shake violently even more than it was previously. She shook her head before lifting her hand to wipe away the tears that were falling from her spheres.

"Chad go and check inside and I'll stay out here with her" Troy ordered and didn't dare take his eyes from Gabriella's swollen bloodshot ones.

Chad nodded solemnly at his best friends before looking down to the shaking girl sitting on the pavement. "You wanna call the cops or your sisters?"

"NO" Gabriella practically screamed at him. Chad almost had to take a step back Gabriella's unfamiliar voice.

"Okay, okay. We won't call. Chad scream or yell if you need any help okay" Troy ordered again and Chad nodded in agreement before sprinting off into Gabriella's house.

As soon as he was gone Gabriella let more tears fall from her eyes. Her breathing became shallow and she could imagine that her face was pale. She gazed down to the pavement floor and watched her tears drop from the skin of her face onto the pavement floor making darker spots appear on the white stone floor.

"Come here" Troy coaxed and wrapped his marble muscular toned arm around her petite body and brought her close to him. As soon as her head hit his marble chest she could hear his heart beating rapidly in her ear and the fireworks were erupting in her small frame. Even though she was absolutely distraught she could still feel the sensations that Troy was giving her.

"Th...they're back f..for us" She stuttered and she couldn't control what was coming from her mouth it was like she was grieving for so many things.

"Who is?" Troy asked carefully and began to draw small circles on her bare arm with the pad of his thumb.

She gasped for breath as it was coming in spasms and her full body was trembling and Troy seemed to bring her closer to him. She was probably overreacting she knew it.

"I...I" She managed to get out but she was finding breathing difficult. Her lungs felt like they had been cut from the rest of her body. Butterflies were rounding in her stomach but not the good kind. Her chest began to ache terribly but not like her heart was breaking; it was as if it was a cause of her lungs being deprived from oxygen. Black began to cloud her vision and she felt like her head felt a thousand pounds of weight. Her eyes were fluttering close. "Can't b..breathe"

Gabriella felt the weight from her body be shifted as her petite frame fell onto Troy's built muscular body to try and receive strength from him. "Whoa whoa. Gabriella keep your eyes open"

Her panic was being thrown into complete overdrive and her eyes fluttered open and she stared up into his face, her breathing still coming short if not at all. Her stomach felt tight and her head began to ache. "I...c...can't"

Troy's eyes became alarmed and he tried to let her go to give her space but it wasn't working. "Gabriella. You need to breathe okay? Breathe deeply like this"

Gabriella watched as Troy's inhaled through his nose deeply, holding it for a few seconds and then pouting his lips to exhale his breath. "Can you do that for me?"

Her breathing was short and shallow and she tried to breathe deeply through her nose but her lungs began to burn. It was as if she didn't remember how to breathe. Was that even possible? Gabriella began to open her mouth to speak to Troy.

"No. No talking. Just breathe" He said quickly and panicked. She knew he wasn't talking because he was panicking himself but what could she do.

Oh yeah. Breathe.

He loosened his muscular arm around her and she almost whimpered in disappointment, but he grabbed her small hand and enclosed it in his. As if he was still trying to tell her he was there, through her trying her best to breathe normally.

"Calm down. Just breathe slowly, deep breaths" Troy instructed slowly before she started to feel her breath evening out a tiny bit. "It's gonna be okay"

As soon as he said it was going to be okay the tears welled in her eyes and her panic rose. Fear for Chad. What if there was someone in there and she was too selfish being outside crying and stuff and Chad was in there potentially fighting with an intruder?

"No. No no no no no". Troy locked his piercing blue with her chocolate brown. "Breathe okay. Just breathe"

Gabriella closed her eyes and began to feel her breath becoming even again. How annoying was she? She lowered her eyes onto Troy's chest to see it rising and falling, and she focussed on copying his breathing to even hers out.

In and out. In and out.

Her deep breaths were evening out back to normal. Her eyes were shut to concentrate more. She wanted to know Chad was okay. That everything was okay. Troy squeezed her hand encouragingly to help her breathe and to let her know that he was still there. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay"

Him being there was helping her. Just knowing he was there not without him holding her hand or having his arm around her was just helping her to breathe. Her lungs were beginning to cool down, back to a normal temperature. Her body wasn't trembling as much. The fatigue was draining from her body also as the butterflies dissipating. She opened her eyes to see Troy's sapphire spheres beaming down at her along with his shining whites smiling at her encouragingly.

"You alright?" Troy whispered as her chest was still rising and falling but at a much slower pace.

"Yeah. I will be when Chad comes out" Gabriella revealed and Troy opened his arm again around her waist and pulled her to him. Her ribs rested against his.

"He'll be fine. I swear" Troy promised and pulled her even closer to him but that wasn't even humanly possible. "He'll come out of that door any second"

Gabriella's body was still shaking lightly. But Troy Bolton had his arm around her. What more could she want? Oh yeah not the feeling that somebody was inside her house. But she felt safe.

Like he was protecting her.

"If he doesn't I'm holding you responsible" She attempted to joke and distantly she could hear the steady beat of his heart contacting with his rib cage.

"He will" He repeated. "He will"

There was a comfortable silence between the two of them, it felt like hours but in reality it was only a few minutes. There was nothing more that she wanted than to see Chad's figure walk through the threshold of her house. But being with Troy just made her feel better. To hear his steady breathing and to hear his heart beating in perfect sync with her own, that had slowed down and was almost back to normal. "You're shaking. Are you cold?"

Gabriella shook her head slowly. She let out a deep breath. One of the breaths that would come out after a big crying episode like she had just had. "No. I'm okay"

She heard the distant beep of her message tone erupting from her bag. Troy's arm that wasn't around Gabriella reached over and grabbed her back and grabbed the cell phone out of it, handing it to her.

She smiled when she realized it was Taylor. Her long finger pressed down on the button to show the content of the message.

_I'm fine. Went to Sharpay's. Hope you're okay! Sorry I left. You can still come around when I get home if you want? If not I'll call in the morning xxx_

She seemed to have sobered up because all of the characters were right. Gabriella still felt a small smile come onto her face at her friend's kindness and obvious guilt that she had left her. "Just Taylor"

Troy smiled contently at the girl in his arms. "She say anything about Chad?"

Gabriella shook her head and the black curls swayed over Troy's chest. "Nah just that she's at Sharpay's and she'll call me tomorrow"

Troy nodded in understanding and started to draw the invisible circles on her arm as if it was to warm her up but she wasn't even cold. "You scared me ya know"

Gabriella blinked in realization of what he had just said. It was so blunt, so random. But it made her lean into him all the more. "I'm sorry"

Troy's throat vibrated on the cushion of her black hair. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. As long as you're okay now" His nose nuzzled into her raven tendrils. "Do you know what's weird?"

Gabriella let a small yawn erupt reluctantly from her mouth. "What?"

Troy chuckled at Gabriella's attempt to keep her mouth shut whilst she yawned. "That I've only known you for what? A couple of weeks yet I can't imagine what it would be like without seeing you every day"

Gabriella lifted her heavy head and she was about to say something when she heard the door creak open.

"Everything's fine" Chad's breathless voice called down the garden and Gabriella immediately jumped up from her steps and ran over to Chad who was walking towards her. "I checked all the rooms. Nothings stolen, nothings smashed. Everything's okay"

Gabriella's breaths started to come in spasms again until she felt Troy's hand rest at the bottom of her back making all of her worries dissipate. "Are you sure?"

Chad grinned tightly at her and brought his hand up sweeping the black ringlets from his vision and Gabriella could see beads of sweat on his forehead. "You see that? Well I checked every single room, every single closet every single drawer. Trust me. There's nobody in that house"

Gabriella smiled and let a sigh of relief escape. Her flat stomach vibrated as she did so. She wrapped her arm around Chad's neck and squeezed for dear life. He had saved her. There was no way she would have gone back into that house without knowing no-one was there. "Thank you"

She felt Chad's large hand rest on her back. "It's okay"

Gabriella released herself from Chad's embrace and she suddenly felt like she didn't want to be there. She couldn't be in that house alone. Not tonight.

"Come on let's get you inside" Chad instructed and took the lead in taking Gabriella into the house. Troy following behind her.

In the back of her mind she still had a fear that somebody was there. But they would protect her right? The small muscles in her petite body stiffened in fear. One thought crossing her mind. She couldn't be in that house alone tonight. Troy seemed to sense her fear and placed his hand on the small of her back to comfort her. It was just a touch but it seemed to make her body relax almost instantly.

"It's okay" He whispered into the depths of her black hair and watched her walk to the stairs.

"You know what? I don't think I can go upstairs" Gabriella shook her head quickly and held her hands up in distress.

Chad turned around on the square space connecting the two stairways together. "Gabriella its fine, it's okay. There's nobody up there"

Gabriella's head shook rapidly her curls swaying even faster. "I... I can't" She stuttered. "It's fine. I'll just sleep on the couch tonight and figure it out in the morning"

It was her greatest fear. Being alone. Being surrounded by her family day in day out, the house was always crowded. But she never got tired of it. She always loved being around people. And being alone frightened her, after everything that had happened in her life she could never handle it.

"Okay, that's fine. You want me to get you some your nightclothes or?" Chad's deep voice asked her. Gabriella wouldn't deny it. Taylor was a lucky guy to have such a caring boyfriend. She trusted him, even though she had known him for a few weeks.

"It's okay" Gabriella whispered before feeling chills run up and down her spine. "You can just grab a blanket or something"

Chad nodded his spherical head vertically. "Sure. I'll be right back"

Gabriella sighed shakily before turning round to be met by Troy's intent gaze. "Come on" He reached out his masculine hand for her to grab, she did so and followed him back into the living room where she sat down on the comfort of the couch cushions, she immediately felt a shift in weight next to her where Troy sat down and pulled her that close to him that she thought he would be inside her if he tried to bring her closer.

The only thing was she wouldn't mind Troy Bolton being inside of her.

At all.

"So I don't wanna panic you or anything. Because, fuck that was scary" Troy's chest vibrated on Gabriella's porcelain face in a chuckle. "But why don't you want me to call one of your sisters?"

Gabriella sighed deeply and nuzzled her ski slope nose further into Troy's built chest. "They're in San Francisco you know that right? And as soon as you call they'll be straight in that car driving at silly speeds to get back here and like Chad said, there's nothing to worry about. I don't wanna worry them"

Troy's arm that wasn't around Gabriella reached over to the lamp sitting next to him and flicked the switch, illuminating his gorgeous face in the light. "I get that"

Gabriella switched her chocolate spheres to Chad's outline that was stood in the doorway a blanket folded over in his left hand and some sweats in the other hand and he had a tight smile on his face at the two of them. "Blanket and some sweats"

Gabriella smiled through fighting a yawn. "Thanks"

Chad threw them carelessly to Gabriella and she felt a cold wind hitting her in the face causing her eyes to shut sharply, and through her ears she heard two throaty laughs. Even though her night started off good and then it got worse she felt comforted by the two guys being there. What would she have done without them? She would have probably stayed lying on the pavement all night crying her eyes out so much she'd be depriving her lungs of oxygen. And the only thing she knew now was that she didn't want them to go.

"Um, I know you might not want too but I... I don't wanna be alone. So will you two stay with me tonight?" She asked in a voice so small it was almost inaudible but she felt Troy's hand pull her further to him.

"I'm in" Troy volunteered raising the arm that wasn't around Gabriella to illustrate that he would stay with her.

Chad smiled his cheesy grin before looking down at Gabriella and he must have sensed her silent pleading. "Definitely, I can go to Taylors first thing. And hoops, you're sleeping on the floor man"

Troy laughed his throaty laugh. "The floor works for me"

The floor did not work for her. She knew that she wouldn't even be able to attempt sleeping unless Troy Bolton had some kind of physical contact with her. But a sudden wall of tiredness washed over her. A yawn emitted from her graceful features and her eyes closed tightly in unison.

"Gabriella. Am I okay to go get a cup of coffee?" Gabriella let her heavy eyelids droop closed

Another yawn emitted from her mouth for the second time in the past 2 minutes. "Yeah. Of course you are"

Troy's hand gingerly reached up into the depths of her black hair. He picked a certain strand and took it in his grasp letting it gracefully fall in between his pointer finger and middle finger. "You're tired"

It wasn't a question just a statement. And who was she to deny. She was exhausted. But on one side she was fearful and petrified that someone was in her house earlier that night but the other side of her was on an euphoric high that she was nestled so close to Troy Bolton with his arm securely around her making all of her cares fade away. "Mmmmm"

Troy used his other arm to tenderly caress her upper arm using the pad of his thumb and the rest of his fingers in a kind of light squeezing sensation but it tickled her, sending sparks shooting through her veins. "Get some sleep okay. We'll be here when you wake up"

It was at that defying moment she felt two pieces of heaven press onto her cushion hair. No way. Troy Bolton just kissed her forehead. Fireworks that she had never felt before sparked in her small body and euphoria spread down it.

And then that was when Gabriella succumbed to the black that washed over her in a peaceful slumber.


	10. Hypnotized

**A/N: This is a filler but it's got an important part in it. I don't really like it but there you go! Let me know what you think :)**

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"So you're feeling better right?"

It was the day later and he had been nothing but caring towards her since she had opened her heavy eyelids that morning. Only to see Troy bringing her and Chad a cup of coffee. Chad had fallen asleep in an arm chair and Troy had slept in the couch opposite the one she had slept in.

Gabriella shrugged her boney shoulders before rolling her head on the grass to look at his gorgeous body. "Yeah definitely."

Everybody had agreed to go to Taylor's house that evening and they were sitting in Taylor's back garden lying on the grass and Gabriella felt the soft tickle of it against her tan skin. Sharpay and Kelsi were sharing a snow white chair together and Taylor and Chad were sat opposite Gabriella and Troy discussing their fight over Tara. From the corner of Gabriella's eye she could see Taylor nodding solemnly with a look of guilt in her almost black spheres and Chad was rubbing her arm comfortingly.

Things were looking good.

"Where are your sisters tonight?" Troy questioned whispering into the mass of her black hair.

Gabriella nuzzled her nose further into Troy's defined chest. The cord material of his jersey rubbing comfortingly against her face. "They're home."

As soon as her sisters had arrived home Gabriella had told them about the suspected intrusion and they immediately had the police around just to be on the safe side. So her day had revolved around her being interviewed by the police, Chad and Troy had also had interviews to say what they saw. "Have the cops called about last night?"

Gabriella had felt guilty all day about getting Troy and Chad involved but they had insisted that it was fine. She still felt a lining of guilt in her flat stomach though. "I told them to call if they did and they haven't so... I'm really sorry about getting you and Chad involved though"

Troy's irresistible lips turned upwards in a smile. "I've told you. It's fine. Just as long as you're okay that's all I'm bothered about. You don't think the cops scare me do you?"

Gabriella giggled at Troy's attempt to make her feel better but she still couldn't help feeling guilty. "I don't know. Everyone's scared of something"

Troy laughed at Gabriella's flirting with him. Well she was trying. "Not Troy Bolton"

Gabriella highered her neck to look at Troy's flawless face. She rested her boney elbows on the defined abs that were still vibrating lightly at his 'joke'. "Troy Bolton's not scared of anything?"

Troy's arm reached up and scratched the back of his neck before his crystal blue eyes bored into her own. "Only one thing"

Gabriella raised her eyebrows intriguingly and her pouted lips smirked. "And what's that?"

Troy laughed again and he craned his neck so he could see her perfectly. "If I told you I'd have to kill you" He whispered his face so close to hers she could feel his hot breath tickle her blemish free features.

"You suck" Gabriella insulted playfully and laid back down at his side feeling his arm reflexively fall around her small body again.

Troy laughed a throaty laugh and his arm lengthened down to hers, she thought he was going to connect their palms together but instead he brought her arm up to look at the charm bracelet sitting on her left thin wrist. "What's that?"

Gabriella looked at him sceptically before giggling at how dumb he sounded. That was the exact thing that Sharpay had said to her about the bracelet. "It's a bracelet?"

Troy squeezed her frame tighter and with his free hand he used his pointer finger to prod her in her flat stomach causing it to roll in laughter. "Ha-ha. I know what it is, but why do I have the feeling it's so much more than a bracelet to you?"

Whoa. He was good! Had someone mentioned something to him? Or was he just telepathic or something? "You're good. It's just important to me, that's all"

Gabriella couldn't see his beautiful tan face but she could imagine that he was nodding in understanding. "I get that"

That was the second time he had said that to her in the past 24 hours. Funny how she could remember the exact things that he had said to her. The only sentence that had been roaming around her fluid filled brain since it had left his luscious lips was _"I've only known you for what? A couple of weeks yet I can't imagine what it would be like without seeing you every day"_ It was the only sentence that mattered to her. "So show me something that's important to you"

Troy sighed deeply, and ran his hand through the stray hairs of her own that were resting over his bicep. His free arm then approached down to his denim jean pocket before pulling something out that Gabriella was oblivious to what it was. He brought the item infront of her face. It was a dark chocolate brown wallet. The material was washed in some places and also it was a little worn. "My grandpa bought me this wallet for my 13th birthday. When I opened it on that morning I was so in love with it I wouldn't leave it alone. And I've used it ever since, my mom and dad always tell me it's a piece of shit now but I'm still in love with it"

Gabriella smiled blissfully before her face winced at the stench that was drifting over to her direction. "What the fuck is that?" Troy's body bolted up causing Gabriella's to do so too.

"That Mr Bolton would be Chad's ass" Taylor informed with her hand clenched in a fist over her nostrils. Gabriella noted how she had moved from one end of the garden to the other and Chad was still positioned where he was previously with a mischievous grin on his face.

"I told you my ass always fucking stinks after I've been on the juice" Chad announced proudly and Gabriella turned her head to see Sharpay with her jacket that was on her shoulders positioned over her face.

"Are you sure it's not a toxic spill?" She asked disgustedly although her voice was muffled by the hot pink jacket sitting infront of her Gabriella giggled at her face that was winced behind the item of clothing.

"Yeah. Danforth that's fucking disgusting" Troy insulted even though he was chuckling. The stench was so bad she felt like her stomach was about to heave although she hadn't eaten alot that day she still felt like everything that was sitting in her stomach was about to spill out onto the rich green grass.

"Whatever man" Chad attempted to hush them all but was still laughing hard at his own stench. "You heard what fat bastard says on Austin powers. Everyone loves their own brand"

Every feature on Gabriella's face shrunk together in disgust matching Taylor's, Sharpay and Kelsi's faces. However Troy on the other hand was laughing hard at Chad's comment. Gabriella could see his stomach vibrating he was laughing that hard.

"Chad you're a pig" Taylor proclaimed. "So is everybody coming inside?"

Gabriella nodded her head in unison with the rest group and followed them into the house. Gabriella slid her body onto the chocolate brown almost felt material couch and feeling the soft material hug to her figure. She rested her slim arm on the arm of the couch along with her head. The black tendrils falling down the side of the couch. "Any room for me?"

Gabriella lifted what felt like her 100 kilogram head and looked into his azure spheres that were looking down at her. His lips pursed together in a tight smirk. "There's always room for you"

Gabriella watched as Troy closed his eyes and she could have sworn she heard a groan originate from his lips. But she was imagining that right? She manoeuvred her body slightly so Troy's built being could fit perfectly at her side.

The chemistry between the two of them was overwhelming. She had never felt so close to someone, apart from her family of course. She felt like she could let Troy into everything and that scared her. "So everyone's staying here tonight right?"

Gabriella nodded her head at Taylor's proposition. She felt if she slept alone for one night without Troy being near her would literally torture her. How pathetic was she?

"Where are your parents?" Sharpay questioned while buffing her nails with a file.

"They're visiting my sister at college. I didn't wanna go so..." Gabriella watched as Chad attached his lips to Taylor's neck suckling and licking. Taylor was giggling and laughing and Gabriella felt her stomach churn.

"Okay so if you two are gonna go off upstairs coincidently I'm not sticking around" Sharpay stated all of the muscles in her face contracted with jealousy.

"Chad's not getting laid tonight; Taylor's on her period" Gabriella teased causing everyone to burst out in laughter. Chad's face was as straight as a ruler. Clearly she hadn't told him.

Taylor smirked and let out a small laugh before pressing her hand to Chad's cheek, twice in a pat. "Sorry honey"

"Sharpay wants pizza" Sharpay proclaimed before she got up and strode towards the sideboard that was in the corner of the room. Opening the drawer and pulling out heaps full of menu's, looking at them and then throwing them on the floor, forgotten.

"Shar, you're cleaning that up" Taylor informed and walked out of the living room. Moments later she walked back with a few bottles of lemonade, coke, orange and a packet of plastic cups in her arm. "And you're calling the pizza place" She directed that to Kelsi who's face flashed crimson.

"Taylor you know I can't. I can't talk on phones" This was one of the first things that she had heard Kelsi say. She had been awfully quiet all day, even when they were outside she hadn't spoken to Sharpay she had merely just sat there.

"Well either that or you can tell us what the fucks going on" Sharpay must have picked up on Kelsi's silence. Her face was stunned; she bit down on her bottom lip. Gabriella knew that she was doing it out of nervousness. After all, that's what she did it for.

"There's nothing going on" Kelsi looked down to the floor and spoke in such a small voice Gabriella could barely hear it.

"Kels, you've been quiet all day. Playing with your fucking thumbs for God's sake, what's going on?" Chad asked clearly concerned before he took his place on the arm of the couch that Gabriella was sitting on, next to Troy.

"You'll tell him" Kelsi whispered but immediately Gabriella's eyes shot to Sharpay's milky chocolate brown and they shared a look of knowing.

"This about Cross? Hey me and hoops won't tell" Chad's hand moved to slap Troy on his godlike bicep.

"Nah I won't tell." Troy added. God how kind was he? Here Kelsi was going to tell them something that would be about one of his and Chad's best friends and they were going to keep quiet about it.

"Ryan kissed me last night" Kelsi whispered and then put her hand over her mouth like it was a sin to say the words. "Oh god"

Sharpay seemed to have an amused look on her face, but Troy and Chad on the other hand looked stunned.

"Evans? Fuck did he finally grow a pair?" Chad joked earning a round of daggers to be sent from Sharpay.

"Hey. That's my brother you fucker" Sharpay insulted even though she had a playful smirk on her face.

Realization dawned on Kelsi's face before she looked in Sharpay's direction. "You knew didn't you?"

Sharpay smirked tightly and reached up to her hot pink retro earrings and straightening them so the circle was facing Gabriella. "So did Taylor"

Taylor's jaw literally dropped to the floor, and she reached her hand up to her mouth to illustrate her shock. "We didn't want to crowd you. We thought we'd wait for you to tell us"

Kelsi's small hand pressed against the skin on her forehead. "Did he tell you?"

Gabriella noticed how tense Troy's frigid body was against hers. She reached up her small palm onto his chest to relax him. He relaxed almost immediately and pulled her closer to him.

"Yeah last night, he came home and he said he felt awful on Jason he was really, I don't know how would you say he was Tay?" Gabriella's eyes followed Sharpay's as they switched from Kelsi's nervous face to Taylor's face that was deep in thought.

"You could tell he felt guilty but it was like he wanted to do it again but he said he wasn't going to do anything until Jason was okay with it. That was when you went to sleep Shar" Gabriella heard Troy sigh from above her.

"He's a good guy Kels. I'm not gonna deny you that. He's a friend but so is Jason it's up to you listen to your heart" Troy spoke for the first time they had discussed the subject. He was so kind so sincere. Well she really had to stop going on about that. "Maybe the three of you should sit down and talk"

Kelsi's eyes that weren't dressed in her glasses jumped from her head. "No. No way. Jason would kill him"

Chad laughed a little. "He wouldn't kill him. Jason told us that he just wants you to be happy"

Kelsi looked down at the floor again before lifting her eyes with a solemn smile on her face. "He said that?"

Both Chad and Troy nodded their heads in agreement.

"I'll think about it" Kelsi nodded as if she was confirming to herself that she would do something about it.

"So who wants to share a tuna pizza with me?" Sharpay asked, trying to lighten the mood, her hand holding a menu out to display to the rest of them.

"That's fucking disgusting." Chad frowned. He lifted his frame up from the couch and snatched the paper menu from Sharpay's miniature hand.

Gabriella giggled her sweet laugh and nuzzled her face into Troy's chest feeling a yawn erupt from her small mouth.

"Tired?" Troy whispered into her black hair. God did he miss a thing?

Of course she was tired she had hardly gotten any sleep last night. But she didn't want to fall asleep. Her eyes however had other ideas. Gabriella's head nodded against Troy's chest.

"You wanna sleep?" Troy asked her solemnly while in the distance she could hear Chad and Sharpay arguing over tuna pizza.

"No" Gabriella sighed and shook her head, the tip of her nose sweeping against Troy's t-shirt.

"Gabriella you'll share a tuna pizza with me won't you?" Sharpay tried to coax but the idea of fish on a pizza made Gabriella's stomach churn. Her face turned up in disgust.

"Sorry Shar I'm with Chad on this. That's disgusting." Gabriella agreed, nodding her head to illustrate.

"See. Just get something else or eat a pizza to yourself." Chad suggested while looking at the menu.

Sharpay's face was brewing. Gabriella could see it. She was waiting for a killer insult, any time now... "Meh"

That was it? Meh? What the hell was that? Gabriella giggled at Sharpay's efforts.

An hour after that Gabriella found her stomach full and she threw the last slice of pizza on the floor. Taylor and Gabriella had gotten a pepperoni pizza to share and Gabriella sighed deeply her heavy head leaning back onto the cushion of the couch.

Troy's azure orbs were locked on Gabriella's exhausted frame. Her eyes were drooping open and closed. The next thing she knew his tall built figure was standing infront of her. "Can I sit down?"

Gabriella smiled playfully and lifted her heavy body upwards and let him sit down. As soon as her body touched his she could feel the sparks shooting electricity from her fingertips to her heart, feeling it pump a little faster and then the sparks running down to her toes.

"I think someone needs to sleep" Troy teased in a sing song kind of voice.

Gabriella's eyes closed lightly and let her sleep take over her.

_The blood curdling scream was enough to pierce anyone's heart. And what was she doing? Sat fearing for her own life behind the banister. Her breathing was short and shallow and the acid tears were pouring down her face like a waterfall. She couldn't control it. _

"_What the hell do you want?" The fearful voice entered her ears. Gabriella was frozen in her spot. She couldn't hear her own breathing. She was scared that if she breathed any louder she would be dead. _

_There was no other option. _

_All of a sudden there was a huge crash followed by another piercing scream. Gabriella gathered all of her inner strength and began to walk down the stairs as quietly as she could. She was biting her lip in fear of her life that they wouldn't hear her. Her footsteps were minute and the hooded figures were stood near the now shattered window. _

_In the distance Gabriella could hear mutters of words, deep voices. But she didn't know what they were saying. She had to do something. She had to get out, she had to call the cops, she had to do something._

_Otherwise she would be dead. _

_There was one side of her body that wanted her to run out of the room, run out of her house and into the street where she would be at least safer than she was at that moment in time. She could run to the neighbours she could ask them to help she could do something. _

_But the other side of her body was rebelling against her. Telling her to go over to the two hooded figures and try and fight. Try and get away. It was like an adrenalin rush it was building, rising inside of her. The tears were still silently falling. Fearfully. _

_She carried on tip toeing into the room where they were. She could see the remainders of the glass on the floor, from the shattered window. Where was she? Gabriella's breathing was coming short as she was panicking more. What could she do? She was 5'3 and 108 pounds. What kind of damage was she going to do? _

_Not a lot. _

_But she had to do something. Her life depended on it. _

_She had ordered her to go upstairs and that she could handle it but she couldn't could she. _

_As her body rounded towards the two people her heart practically gave way. It was violently crashing against the cage of her chest. Her breathing was shallow and she was trying her best to keep it quiet. _

_And then they turned around. _

"No..."

"_Look what we have here" The deep booming voice questioned as Gabriella's eyes jumped from her head. She had never had to wonder what death would feel like but now it was staring her right in the face. _

"Leave me alone..."

_Her heart was in her mouth. She couldn't breathe. She felt like all of her oxygen was being cut away from her. This was it. She wasn't going to wake up now. She knew it. _

_And the next thing she felt was a fist connecting with her temple. Her limbs gave out on her and her back violently connected with the floor. _

_That was the last thing she saw before black washed over her. _

"NO"

Gabriella's small body bolted up and she thought that her body was going to violently spring over the other end of the couch. She could feel the moist sweat on her face as she continued panting trying to catch her breath. The darkness was surrounding her; she placed her hand to her chest to steady herself.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa it's okay." The deep voice comforted her, making her body jump again. But she felt a muscular bang hold her tightly. "It was just a dream its okay"

But that was the thing.

It wasn't a dream.

She hadn't had that dream in over 2 months. Why had it happened now? Gabriella turned her head to be met by Troy's concerned azure gaze. He was dressed in a snow white wife beater. His masculine hand reached up into her now drenched with sweat black hair.

"It's okay" He whispered soothingly and Gabriella felt her breath evening out.

"How do you always know how to calm me down?" Gabriella whispered rapidly. She didn't know how long she had been sleeping, it only felt like 10 minutes but in reality it must have been much longer than that because Troy and Gabriella were the only ones left in the room. It was completely black. The only light that was radiating was the moonlight shining through the window. And the way his piercing blue eyes were illuminating how much brighter she saw him in her eyes.

Troy smiled knowingly and kept his hand in her black hair. "Because I wanna protect you"

Gabriella's heart jumped at the sound of him saying that and she smiled at him, to see him smiling back down at her. "How long have I been out?"

Troy sighed deeply in thought and looked down at the watch that was sitting on his left wrist. "A while, you were totally dead to the world. Everyone went up about an hour ago"

Gabriella fought back a yawn and felt her eyes water as she let it consume her. "And weren't you sleeping?"

Troy rested his chin on the cushion of Gabriella's flowing curls. "Yeah, but you were talking in your sleep"

Gabriella's body froze in shock. What was she saying? "Saying what?"

Troy sighed and looked at her worriedly. "No, leave me alone. You sure you're okay?"

Gabriella closed her eyes and sighed deeply. This was the last thing she needed. "I'm fine"

Troy peppered his lips to the knot of her hair and immediately Gabriella felt at ease, fireworks were rounding through her body. So much did she desire to push her lips onto his. Assuming he wanted to kiss her which he probably didn't. He probably just wanted to make her feel at ease and get into the East High routine. He'd be over her within a week.

Tops.

"You should get some sleep" Troy whispered and stroked a curl that hung down on her chest.

"What if I have another nightmare?" Her eyes jumped in alarm. She actually didn't mean to say that out loud. It was just a thought that was roaming around in her brain.

"I told you. I'll protect you"


	11. Only You Can Save Me

"I was thinking how nothing lasts, and what a shame that is."  
"Some things last."

Benjamin + Daisy; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

* * *

"Kelsi wants to talk. And something's telling me she doesn't want to get back together"

Jason's solemn voice was enough to break anyone's heart. Troy lifted his head from tying the laces on his white sneakers. The team had just gotten done with a late night practice and he had just been in the shower. There was nothing that he loved more was to get all hot and sweaty in practice and then go to the shower and feel the water refresh his muscles and build his strength back up.

Troy coughed trying to rid himself of the guilt feeling that he knew why Kelsi wanted to talk and Jason didn't. He looked to Chad and Chad raised his eyebrows, portraying that he felt guilty as well as him.

"What do you think it's about man?" Chad coughed.

"Evans probably" He said with bitterness laced into every word. "I know I said I just wanted her to be happy but I still love her y'know"

How much of an awful friend was he? One of his best friends was totally broken up about his ex and he knew she was planning on being with someone else and he didn't say anything? He was a shit friend. No he was worse than shit. He was the worst friend ever.

"I know" Chad commented. Like there was anything else to say.

"Has she said anything to you guys?" Oh no. This was where the bad friend thing had to stop. He couldn't lie to his best friend. He couldn't. He wouldn't.

Chad stood from his place on the bench in the locker room and walked to his locker. "Nothing I wouldn't have expected her to say"

That wasn't a lie was it? Troy silently thanked Chad for taking this one. He had never been a good liar. And he was thankful that he wasn't. He couldn't get into trouble that way right? Jason seemed to nod solemnly. Thank god he bought it. He was still an awful friend.

"Zeke how's things with the ice princess?" Troy laughed at the nickname Chad had for Sharpay and had the same nickname for years. Of course she didn't like it but it didn't matter, Chad was a wind up merchant everyone knew that.

"As normal as it could be" Zeke sighed. Looking up with depressed eyes. "She's been kinda distant lately though"

Jason's eyebrows rose. "That's when you know something's wrong"

Zeke sent daggers to Jason's figure and spherical face. "It's like she's thinking about something"

Troy's eyebrows narrowed in confusion. She seemed fine the other night when they were together. Maybe she was having second thoughts about the whole no strings attached thing. But there were strings attached they were head over heels in love with each other. Even if neither of them would admit it.

"Zeke why don't you just grow some balls and ask her the fuck out" Clearly Chad liked the phrase that involved growing balls. He had picked it up and he was using it all of the time.

"Shut the fuck up man. I have but she says she doesn't want to ruin what we have" Zeke mimicked the bits that Sharpay had said to him.

Troy let a throaty laugh escape from his throat. Troy never had understood why Sharpay hadn't gotten together with Zeke, she would go mental if there were any other girls around and he would if there were any other guys, it was like they were together. They just weren't official.

"So what's the point?" Jason asked. Clearly he was a woman hater. And Troy couldn't blame him. Fortunately he never had a girl cheat on him before so he didn't have to be a woman hater.

"Jason" Zeke scolded. "Unbelievable"

Oh yeah did he forget to mention? Zeke and Jason themselves were like a married couple. They always bickered always argued over the little things such as Zeke's relationship. Zeke had always said that he was jealous that Jason couldn't get a hot girl like Sharpay.

"What she calls the shots doesn't she? She calls you when she wants sex. You fucking go around like her little puppy dog. She doesn't like you being around other girls. And when she's around other guys, fuck. Does Jimmie not come to your mind? Troy had to hang out with him a full week just so you wouldn't get charged. What is the point?" Clearly Jason had alot of issues, and they all boiled down to the opposite sex who had a vagina.

Troy laughed at Jason's outburst. It was so bitter, so not Jason. But so fucking funny. Chad was doubled over in laughter but the ironic thing was that Jason was right.

"Jason you seriously are unbelievable. I love her" Zeke scowled at Jason. Jason's bushy eyebrows rose.

"Love sucks" Jason commented and slammed his locker with vigorous force causing a loud slam.

"You done?" Clearly Zeke wanted a black eye because Troy could see it coming.

"Whatever" Jason mumbled and Troy bent his legs beneath him and standing on his feet waiting for the rest of the guys to hurry up.

"So how's Gabriella, Troy?" Zeke asked changing the subject completely.

Troy felt his face flash crimson at the thought of Gabriella. To say he liked her was an understatement. Troy smiled tightly, but he couldn't help that. Every time he was around Gabriella, or let alone even thought about her a smile flashed on his features. "You spend as much time with her as me"

Troy knew that was a lie. He knew he spent alot of time with Gabriella, well when they were together as a group but he couldn't pluck up the courage to ask her out officially, well on a date.

Chad chuckled. "That's bullshit and you know it"

Troy chuckled nervously and reached up to scratch the back of his neck. "What do you want from me?"

Chad shut his red locker and picked up his gym back. "What I want? I want you to grow some balls" He paused and started chuckling. Clearly the saying 'growing some balls' made him laugh along with everybody else. "And kiss her; ask her out or whatever because guys, they want to be on it"

Troy felt a tinge of jealousy and rage through his veins at the thought of other guy's hands on Gabriella's small body. He wanted her to be his, all his. But he was fucking scared! "What guys?"

Chad sighed but in the distance he heard a giggle erupt from Jason's mouth. "Like me"

Troy felt his fists clench. He knew Jason was joking. And he knew that Gabriella was hot, she was hotter than hot she was absolutely stunning and he couldn't let anyone else have her. He just wouldn't. Zeke, Chad and Troy all turned to glare at Jason.

"What? She's hot" Jason asked rhetorically. For the last time HE KNEW SHE WAS HOT! He really didn't need telling.

"She is. She is. Bolton you know what to do" Chad instructed.

"Chad what are you getting my son to do?" Came the voice of a more mature man.

And he stood before them.

And that was Jack Bolton.

Jack was the coach of the East High wildcats.

Oh... and Troy's father.

"I want your son to get himself some balls" Troy's azure eyes almost jumped from his head in shock.

"I'm sure there's nothing wrong with my sons balls Mr. Danforth. Troy do you want a lift home? I'm gonna be about a half hour you're moms making dinner" Chad was laughing at his best friend's behaviour.

Troy coughed a few times to deepen his voice again as he knew if he spoke it would be in a high pitched tone. "Um, I think I'll walk. If that's alright with you?"

Jack nodded his head. "That's alright. Just don't tell your mother. She'll kill me if she found out I let you walk alone"

It wasn't that far anyways about a 15 minute walk. He'd be fine. He could get things into perspective. Like how he was going to ask Gabriella out, after all he wanted it to be perfect. Just like her.

Troy rolled his azure eyes behind his eyelids. "I'll see you guys tomorrow"

"See ya captain"

And with that Troy walked out into the new fall air that loomed in Albuquerque. It was so much cooler than it was the week before. Troy was wearing his snow white jacket with the crimson stripe down the sleeves and his number 14 and BOLTON across the back.

He felt the cold air tickle over his built muscles, and from the corner of his eye he could see the crisp orange, brown and red leaves starting to fall onto the pavement. His legs were starting to burn from the intense work out session and he secretly wished he had waited that extra half hour for his dad to give him a lift home. He walked towards the park where he knew if he walked through he could get himself home alot faster.

But the only thing was that, the park had a reputation. Everybody who was anybody knew that it wasn't safe to walk through it alone. But Troy could defend himself right? He just wanted to get home as quickly as possible. His stomach was starting to rumble as he could smell the scent of food coming from people's house's in the distance.

He took a turning and ended up at the playground.

And he had to walk through there to get home.

He looked down at the floor to see what he was walking in but he suddenly felt a magnetic pull. He lifted his head up, to look in to the distance.

And there she was.

An angel sat on the swings rocking back and forth. Her black slender eyebrows were raised and her kissable lips pulled together in a smirk. "You look lost wildcat"

God was she trying to kill him? Her sexy voice was enough to just make him moan at that moment. His lips broke out in a grin before he looked at her intently. She was bound to be freezing. Her arms were wrapped around each other to guard herself from the cold. Dressed in a beige oversized jumper that tied around the waist and a pair of shiny leggings. Her hair was pulled back from her face the first time he had ever seen it like that.

But she looked stunning.

But she looked stunning whatever she wore.

"You shouldn't be here you know" Troy attempted to protect her; she flashed her perfectly straight teeth at him in a smile. "It's not safe"

Gabriella's tiny hand rubbed over the muscles of her biceps. "And yet you're walking through here"

Well he could protect himself! She was a 17 year old girl and like he promised her that he wanted to protect her. "I can take care of myself. Besides I wanted to get home quicker, but seeing as in you're here..." He closed the distance between the two and sat down on the swing and kicking off with his legs with a little force and picked his legs off the floor feeling the swing starting to rock back and forth. "So why are you here?"

Gabriella sighed deeply and adoringly leaned her head to the chain to look at him more intently. "Wanted to think I guess"

What did she have to think about? His auburn eyebrows narrowed in confusion. "About anything imparticular?"

Gabriella lowered her head and he watched the black curls follow. Her boney shoulders that were only covered by a thin material shrugged. "Just shit I guess"

Troy was too caught up in the moment to realise that it wasn't safe her being here, anyone could jump out of the bushes and trees that surrounded them. Especially if they were to see a hot girl like Gabriella. "Come on. I'm walking you home"

Gabriella giggled before shaking her head lightly. "Don't you have to be home?"

He had suddenly forgotten about his male instinct for food and it had been replaced by his male instinct for her. Just for her. "I think my mom can wait"

Gabriella gazed down at his hand that was holding the chain lifting him from the floor. "I don't want to get you in trouble"

God could she be any nicer? She didn't want to get him into trouble so she was willing to walk alone. "You won't get me in trouble. I'll call. Come on"

And with that he stood from the swing and lifted the heavy gym back up onto his shoulder. Gabriella followed by standing on her small feet but wrapping her arms further around each other. Troy suddenly remembered that she didn't have a coat. He dropped the white bag onto the floor and lowered his shoulder to take off the jacket.

Gabriella looked at him confusedly before it dawned on her that he was going to give her his jacket. "I don't..."

Troy shook his head rapidly and wrapped the jacket around her dainty shoulders. "I'm a gentleman" He smiled earning one back in Gabriella. She grabbed the hems of the jacket and pulled it around her frame, digging her head into the material.

"So will your mom be pissed?" Gabriella questioned as they started walking out of the park and onto the street.

"Nah, she'll live" Troy laughed and lifted the bag higher on his shoulder. "You shouldn't be out here you know"

Gabriella chuckled and Troy noted how her hands were still rested delicately on his jacket. "I've told you this. Neither should you"

Her lips were curved upwards in a sexy flirtatious smirk. She was actually trying to kill him. "And I told you this. I was trying to get home quicker." He attempted to flirt back with her.

Gabriella's shoulders vibrated as a honey laugh escaped from her throat. "Yeah, well, you don't have to walk me home"

Troy ran his hand through his now dry hair and smirked down at the brunette who was walking so close to him, but he wasn't complaining. "I think I do"

All of a sudden Gabriella's dainty arm slipped through his that was resting in his pocket. Even though her arm was covered he felt the sparks bombard through his body. "I told you I'd protect you" Earning a smile from Gabriella. He could feel her arm shaking lightly beneath his white warm up jacket. "How long have you been sat out there anyway?"

Gabriella's shoulders shrugged loosely. "Just a few hours"

Just a few hours? Just? Jesus no wonders she was freezing. "Fuck Gabriella. You could've got hypothermia y'know"

Why was he being so protective over her anyways? Oh yeah because she was fucking perfect. And she was sitting outside in a deathly park for a few hours. Gabriella giggled. Was she never unhappy? She was always giggling or laughing, chuckling. She always had a smile on her face, even now when she was fucking freezing. "It's fine"

Troy shook his spherical head feeling the hair sweep across his face. "So should I be worried that you're going the right way towards my house?" Her graceful voice questioned before a throaty laugh escaped.

"I know this town" He told her before nudging his hip playfully into hers. "Are you accusing me of being a stalker Miss Montez?"

Her hand raised and lightly squeezed on his bicep. His heart started to beat faster. "What would you say if I was?"

Troy bit down on his thin lip suppressing a groan that was threatening to originate. She was definitely going to kill him. He felt his member twinge and she was only talking, just flirting with him. He could only imagine what it would be like to... Now Troy she asked a question. Answer it. Answer! "You wouldn't be complaining"

Troy watched as Gabriella's eyebrows rose before she bit down on her lip almost seductively. "I never said I would complain"

And then Gabriella's feet came to a halt. Causing Troy's to do so. He looked to his right and saw Gabriella's house right before him. The lights on outside illuminating the entrance making it look so inviting. Gabriella unlinked her arm from his and started to walk up the stairs and the long pathway to her home. Her body turned around invitingly and she moved her head swiftly motioning for Troy to follow her.

Oh no. She was inviting him into her house. Was he going to meet her family? He followed her up to the porch and stood watching him intently. This was it. Troy was plucking up every single ounce of courage he had inside of him to kiss her. Kiss her on her doorstep. That would be romantic right?

"So this is me" It was like she wanted him to do it. The way she was talking, just how her lips moved sexily even without opening her mouth turned him on. "Are you sure you'll be okay walking? I can get one of my sisters to loan me their car"

Troy shook his head. He didn't even know what his tongue was let alone how to use it. He had to kiss her, he just had to. "It's fine." He whispered his voice raspy but his lips were turned into a smirk. He looked down to her lips, they looked so warm. So inviting, like his own thin lips were supposed to belong on hers. They were parted slightly so he could see a glint of her sparkling teeth.

He moved his gaze back up to her eyes, her own stunning brown were looking in his piercing blue, the lust inferno spilling out of both of them. They then moved down to his thin parted lips and back up into his eyes. Confirming that she wanted him to kiss her.

He craned his neck forward and closed his eyes; he felt a slight wind as hers did so to. Any second now their lips were going to touch.

And then the front door opened.

Troy never moved so fast in his life. His head moved back so far he thought it was going to rip from his neck. Gabriella's face looked to the door and her face looked to the floor flashing crimson.

"I thought I heard you" The mature woman's voice explained. A grin plastered across her face.

Gabriella laughed nervously she seemed to be moving her arms and head anywhere secretly hoping that this would all go away. He couldn't believe it. He had taken Chad's advice to kiss her or do something and her sister had interrupted. Fucking great. "You're pregnant. Aren't you supposed to be in bed or something?"

Troy's head moved down to the bump sitting on the older woman's stomach. He was avoiding looking at her, he couldn't look at her. He couldn't even look at Gabriella.

"Gabi, I'm the adult. You're the one that should be in bed." Then she laughed. Clearly she loved making Gabriella squirm as her face was complete tomato red. "You haven't introduced me to your um" She cleared her throat. "You're friend"

Gabriella's eyes shut and her hand moved up to her forehead. "Alyssa this is Troy. Troy this is my sister Alyssa" She didn't even open her eyes as she introduced the two.

Troy smirked at Gabriella's embarrassment and extended his hand to meet the woman's and shook her head firmly. His eyes looked into hers and he was trying to say _I wasn't taking advantage of your sister. _Hoping she had gotten the message she smiled warmly to him. "Do you wanna come in Troy?"

Troy looked to Gabriella whose chocolate brown spheres were practically out of her head and lingering in the cold air. Troy coughed lightly trying to find his voice.

"No that's okay. I've got dinner waiting for me so..."

Troy could have sworn he head Gabriella sigh in relief. He had never had a sister but he knew from being told that they tended to embarrass one another and clearly Gabriella didn't want that. Not tonight.

"Okay. Well some other time then" Alyssa stated, still smiling warmly at him. "It was nice meeting you Troy"

Troy grinned back at the woman. He clearly couldn't call her by her first name. He had just been caught almost kissing her little sister. "Um you too"

Alyssa smiled at the two, her gaze switched to Gabriella. "Don't be long. There's ice cream calling your name"

Gabriella beamed at her sister her face had calmed down to a pale pink colour now. Looking like she had just got alot of blush on her cheeks. And with that the door closed. Gabriella's teeth sunk into her bottom lip.

"Sorry about that" She whispered in a slight laugh. A laugh that portrayed her nerves and embarrassment.

"It's no problem. I'll see you tomorrow though right" Gabriella immediately nodded, a breath erupting in relief. Maybe she thought Troy had gone off her now he had been embarrassed infront of her sister. It would take alot more than that to fight Troy Bolton from Gabriella Montez.

"I'll look forward to it" Gabriella nodded. "Thanks for walking me home"

Troy leaned his head in. Not to kiss her on the lips. He curved his head and his thin lips caught her defined cheek. Gabriella smiled warmly at him.

"Goodnight" She whispered with a smile on her face that he knew was threatening to explode into a beam.

Troy turned on his heels and started to walk down the garden path, he turned around to see her still standing there watching him as he walked away.

"Goodnight"

* * *

**A/N: I almost nearly didn't upload this! Because I havent wrote another chapter but I kinda like the reviews sooo... anyways, the next update might not be for a few days or something because I'm not able to write! I've had an accident earlier yesterday, I was horseriding and I came off the horse, I've got cracked ribs, whiplash, ive hurt my back and my head 'severe' internal bruising so the doctor said. Anyway enough of the life story! I will upload but it might not be until maybe Friday? Or it wil be Thursday if I feel okay. **

**Anways make my day and review! **


	12. Come Running

"I cannot believe you did that to me!" Gabriella exclaimed through the depths of her clothes.

She heard a laugh come from behind her. "I'm sorry. I couldn't help it"

It was 2 days later and Gabriella still hadn't gotten over the humiliation that her sister had caused her. She was that close. THAT close to kissing Troy Bolton and her sister had to fuck it up. His face was so mortified she thought that he was never going to speak to her again. No scratch that even talk to her again.

"Couldn't help what?" Gabriella knew the voice belonged to Phoebe.

Phoebe had been out of town the past couple of days taking care of business. She had gone to LA to see if she could sign any new bands. Gabriella walked out of her closet.

"Troy walks me home the other night okay" Phoebe's slender eyebrows rose in amusement. "And he leans in to kiss Me." her voice projected the last sentence "It was gonna be perfect and then she opens the door and says I thought I heard you"

Phoebe's mouth fell into an O shape and she picked up a pillow from the top of Gabriella's queen sized bed and whacked her with it. "That is so unfair"

Gabriella's eyes enlarged. She was telling her! Her head nodded vertically. "Yeah that is so unfair" Then realization dawned on Gabriella's blemish free features. "Hang on a minute"

Alyssa held the pillow to her stomach, hugging it to her over the bump with a knowing smile on her face.

"You said you heard us but you couldn't have because we weren't talking it was the whole looking at the eyes and the lips thing. And the only thing he did say he whispered." Gabriella was using her index finger to point at her eldest sister and then point off into the distance to illustrate what she was saying. "You... you curtain twitcher"

Alyssa broke out into a laugh. "Days later Gabi"

Phoebe grabbed another pillow from the bed and threw it at Gabriella, Gabriella catching it in her buttercup fingers. "You're turn" Phoebe's amused voice told her.

In one fluid motion Gabriella threw the cushion at her sister, it hitting her in the face. "And now he probably thinks that my family meaning you" She aimed at the eldest of the sisters. "Are freaks"

Alyssa was finding Gabriella's outburst funny as she hadn't stopped laughing yet. Her hand was rested on the bump of her stomach coaxing herself to breath. "Gabi has he spoken to you since?"

Troy had spoken to her, he had done the whole sexy itching the back of his neck thing. He hadn't gone to kiss her again. And he probably never, ever would. He was probably that traumatized that he would just be friends. "Well yeah"

"The point is. You will have publically humiliated the poor guy so he won't have the courage to kiss Gabi now, look what you did." Phoebe chimed in a scolding tone.

Gabriella laughed at Phoebe's attempt to tell her sister off even though she was older than her. "Oh please he's got a lot of confidence" Chimed Alyssa's voice.

"He's hot isn't he" Oh no. Phoebe had completely changed her tune. This was weird. Her sisters were telling her that her wanted boyfriend was hot. Totally weird. Too weird. Gabriella's face screwed up in disgust.

Alyssa and Phoebe were both laughing, Gabriella finally realising that they both did it to purely annoy her. And it worked.

"You make me sick" Gabriella rebutted back to the two of them.

"Oh come on Gabriella. He's been itching his toes to get you for how long he's not gonna give up just because I interrupted a supposed kiss" She did have a point. But Troy could have anyone. Why would he be 'itching his toes' to get her?

"Whatevs." Gabriella sighed and walked back into the closet to pick out the clothes to wear.

"You know what Gabi?" Phoebe's voice called to her.

"Uh-huh" She replied holding out a pair of jeans and continuing to browse through her clothes collection.

"I can see a future with you and this guy" _She wished. _The entire contents of her stomach were practically coming out of her mouth. Troy would probably be with her for a couple of months if that and then he would move onto another new girl. He wouldn't have a future with her.

"What? Please" But saying that Phoebe had always had a sense for what was going to happen in the future. She had predicted that they were going to move, she just hadn't predicted the reasons why or anything like that. "You're crazy"

Gabriella picked out a purple vest off of a hanger and walked back into the room where her two sisters were sitting on the bed.

"Hey Gabi you know what?" Alyssa smiled at her.

Gabriella's eyes narrowed in confusion. "What?"

Alyssa looked at the younger girl with amusement but a tinge of pride in her eyes. "I called the doctor yesterday"

Gabriella's body almost doubled over in fright. Everything was okay right? She wasn't scheduled to have another appointment. It was all fine right? "What? I thought everything was okay"

Gabriella's frightful tone only brought smiles of amusement to her sister's faces. "Relax, Gabi. Everything's fine"

A breath of relief let go from Gabriella's now pouted lips. "God don't scare me like that." She picked up the hanger and began to lift the cami that was clothing her body at that moment.

"Oh just hurry up and tell her. Jees" Hold on. Tell her what? She could feel her body tensing up. What did they have something to tell her?

"It's a girl" Alyssa informed her excitedly. Her eyes enlarged in happiness. She was going to have a niece. A new baby had always excited her because she did love kids but the fact that there was going to be a new baby girl in the family caused her eyes to gloss over in tears of happiness. She had always hated being the baby of the family because they would mode coddle her but now she could do that to a younger version of the family.

She couldn't wait.

"OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!" Gabriella screeched throwing the hangers out of her hand and throwing her thin body on top of her sister, feeling the bump of her new found niece press onto her flat stomach. "You know what?"

Gabriella raised her body and placed her hands on her hips staring down at Alyssa. "I'm totally buying her tiny little ugg's"

Alyssa smiled tightly and nodded her head smugly. "And where are you going to find the money to buy little tiny ugg's?"

She hadn't actually thought of that. But she'd find a way. "I'll sell my body"

And with that Gabriella turned on her heels her bare back facing he sister and swaying her hips to display her thin body.

"What a hot body it is" Phoebe chimed in the background.

"So you're taking me to Sharpay's right?"

"Definitely"

* * *

"So what the fuck happened then hoops?" Chad's voice boomed through his ears.

Troy bounced the basketball from his fingertips and let Chad receive it. "I've told you around 5 times already. I leaned in, we were about to kiss and her sister opened the door"

Chad's amused laughter filled the sounds of his ears; he slung his head back in amusement and the orange sphere left his fingertips only to fall gracefully into the hanging basket on the pole. Chad had come over to Troy's to kill some time as they were both bored and he had made Troy go through the horror that was Gabriella's sister catching them almost kissing the other night around 5 times.

But clearly Chad wasn't getting tired of it.

"Dude that's fucking lousy" He was telling him! He was finally plucking up the courage and he got interrupted. Maybe fate just didn't want them to be together? No he couldn't believe that. He wouldn't believe that. He knew it was fate that he was going to get Gabriella Montez and all he had to do was step up his game and pluck up the courage to kiss her.

And asking her out would be a good idea.

"Yeah you're telling me" Troy commented and ran for the basketball again. Feeling the sweat drip down his face.

It was at that moment when he realised that he could think of better ways to produce sweat. And Gabriella was involved almost every single time.

"So which sister was it?" There was alot of things that Troy Bolton had noticed lately and one of them was the fascination Chad had for Gabriella's sisters. Yeah they were hot but he was just taking it to another level.

"Does it matter?" Troy questioned. His eyebrows narrowed in a scowl. Troy was about to bounce the basketball at Chad but he shook his spherical head, the spongy afro was swept off of his face into a ponytail.

"Of course it does. They're hot" Troy followed Chad's lead to the side of the tarmac area where there was 2 bottles of water and a towel sitting. Chad took the lead in first grabbing the towel and wiping the sweat from his face. Troy did the opposite and felt the weight shift from his feet and he laid his built figure on the green grass.

"Chad, you're obsessed" Troy warned and picked up the bottle of water sitting at the side of him. Taking advantage he sprayed the water over his sweltering face, feeling the ice cold wash over his clammy face. "You know what they say about obsessions"

Troy didn't know what they said about obsessions. But it was worth a shot. "Fuck off. So when are you gonna try again?"

What was this? An episode of Oprah Winfrey. Chad was asking him questions, firing them left right and centre at him. "Try what?"

He was playing stupid. Of course he knew what Chad meant but he was fucking scared. They had been interrupted but saying that he did choose to kiss her on her doorstep. But he didn't want to plan it. "Dude don't play stupid with me, when are you gonna kiss her man?"

Troy closed his eyes in annoyance and felt the weight shift as Chad fell down beside him, his back resting on the grass. "I don't know man. I don't want to plan it y'know she's worth more than that"

Chad slung out his muscular arm and whacked Troy in the chest. "Don't you be getting all sentimental on me dude"

Troy chuckled and ran his hand through his matted brown stringy hair. "Well she is"

He was only speaking the truth. He didn't want to plan their first kiss. Assuming that she wanted there to be a first kiss. He wanted it to just flow. He wanted it to be perfect. Like her. He knew he was probably asking for alot because it was Troy Bolton hardly anything went right for him. But meaningless he wanted the moments before their first kiss to be magical and he wanted it all not to be planned. "Taylor wants to talk"

He was totally changing the subject but he wasn't complaining. The thought of kissing Gabriella just made his palms sweat. Fuck, Bolton. Pull yourself together. She's just a girl. Just a girl. "That doesn't sound good"

Chad laughed mockingly "You're fucking telling me. I think it's about the other night with Tara."

Troy raised his eyebrows. It didn't sound good. Taylor was extremely insecure about Tara but he didn't blame her. She was hot in a weird kind of way but Troy would never go near her with a barge pole. "Did you guys not talk about that?"

Chad nodded his head slowly. "Yeah we did but it was all quick and shit, y'know it was the morning after and she wanted to go see Gabriella, check that she was okay. So we didn't have a full length conversation about it."

Troy nodded his head in understanding before smiling knowingly at his best friend. "And now it's the full length conversation"

Chad's black bushy eyebrows that weren't hid by his hair for once rose suggestively. "Yeah. My stomach is fucking rebelling against me"

Troy let a chuckle rip from his lips. "You're stomach?"

"Yeah. I don't even want to eat you know. What if she fucking finishes things?" That was absolute bullshit; she wasn't going to end it with him. Troy could tell she loved him indefinitely.

"She won't fucking finish things. You just need to show her that there's nothing going on between you and that whore okay" Troy instructed forcefully. He couldn't even begin to imagine how Chad would be if he and Taylor were to split up. It made him shutter at the thought.

"I'll do that when you kiss Gabriella"

"Whatever. Just do it"

* * *

The crash of papers altered the weight on the bed. And the blonde appeared as soon as the papers landed.

"Okay I really need to talk to you"

The desperation bled through Sharpay's high pitched tone and her body dived onto the super king bed and she lifted her pale arm and rested her head on her palm.

"Shoot" Gabriella lifted her head from the notebook she was writing in.

Sharpay took a few deep breaths. Okay now she was really scaring Gabriella. Her milk chocolate orbs were glossed over. What were they tears? Sharpay had always been really happy and upbeat about everything, in the month or so that she had known her.

"You have to promise me that what I'm about to tell you goes no further and I mean it because nobody else knows so if needs be you take it to the grave with you okay bitch?" Sharpay pleaded using her hands to point in Gabriella's face.

"I promise" Gabriella held up her hands to surrender to the blonde's outburst.

"Okay, right so..." She inhaled a few times. Her teeth sunk into her bottom lip and her eyes looked around as if she was debating what she was going to say. "I think... okay. I think I'm pregnant"

She suddenly felt like a dear in the headlights. She couldn't even find her tongue. Her eyes were bulged out of her head. Why the hell was she telling her that? She hadn't even known her that long and here she was telling her she was pregnant.

"Oh my.... Shit. Oh my God" Were the only words that Gabriella could find.

A dry laugh escaped from Sharpay's mouth. "Try that for 3 days and you still won't have the answer"

She didn't understand. Well obviously she understood how it had happened it didn't take a genius to work out how you made a baby but it seemed so not Sharpay. "I don't believe this"

Sharpay's eyebrows rose before she looked down to the pink covers on the bed. "Yeah you should try that for 3 days also"

Gabriella's black eyebrows narrowed in confusion. "Why me? Why tell me? Not that I'm not all grateful and everything but..."

Sharpay held her manicured hand to shush Gabriella. "Because Kelsi wouldn't actually tell me what to do and Taylor yeah hello mom"

Gabriella had to laugh at Sharpay's descriptions of her friends. Kelsi was always shy and she wouldn't say anything that would upset someone else, hence her being so distraught when she finished things with Jason and Taylor? She had definitely taken on the mother roll.

The friend side of Gabriella was taking over the totally 100% in shock side of herself. Like she said it was like she was schizophrenic. "How do you feel about it?"

Gabriella tenderly reached over her hand and touched Sharpay's forearm comfortingly to silently let her know that she was there. "How am I meant to feel? I mean it's me, pregnant. I'm not even 18. I'm not even in a relationship with the father. How fucked up is that?"

She didn't know what else to do; she smiled at the blonde tightly before closing her eyes slightly. "It's not fucked up. Things like this happen. How many tests have you done?"

Sharpay stood from the bed and walked over to a drawer; she pulled it out and held underneath it before walking over and emptying the contents on the bed. There had to be over 10 tests sitting infront of her. And they all said one thing.

POSITIVE

"So many that my drawer stinks of fucking piss." She sat back down on the bed and let out a deep breath. "What the fuck do I do?"

Gabriella took time to think, a sad smile played across her face. She had never been in this situation before but she had been in a situation where she didn't know what to do. "Have you talked to Zeke?"

Sharpay's eyes enlarged as if it was a sin to have said the words. Her head shook rapidly. The hair that was in a pony tail swayed with it. "No. He can't know"

Gabriella nodded her head, still in disbelief about what she had heard. "So that means you've decided what you want to do then?"

Sharpay sighed deeply for what seemed to Gabriella like the fifth hundredth time in the whole 10 minutes that she had gotten there but who was she to judge. She had never been in the situation. "Yes. No. Fuck I don't know" Sharpay threw her thin figure back onto the bed so her head was looking back onto the ceiling. "It's hard y'know"

Gabriella matched her actions and lay back onto the bed looking up at the white ceiling. "I can imagine. But I won't tell a soul. I swear"

Sharpay reached her hand over to touch Gabriella's a simple gesture, her head turned to meet Sharpay's glossy eyes. "Thanks. It's not that I don't want to tell Tay and Kels it's just I need time"

She shook her small head at the blonde. "You don't have to justify yourself to me"

Sharpay seemed to smile gratefully. Her eyes closed slightly. "You're a good friend you know that right?"

It came out as a whisper but Gabriella still felt a heart warming smile blush onto her face. "I try"

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry for the late update! It's been such a bad week! With my accident and all I've been recovering and then on Thursday I got my results from the exams I did in January and I didn't do too well in a couple so that resulted in me crying my eyes out all day, so I haven't had chance to do any writing but I just thought I'd upload as it was Tuesday or something? When I last updated so as I'm depressed! Review to cheer me up!**

**Anyway, I was abit nervous about uploading this chapter, it's kind of a filler but the Sharpay thing I was really nervous to let me know what you think! Thanks guys you're all amazing! **

**Sophiee :) x**


	13. Kiss The Girl

"No man... if you wanna kiss her... You go right ahead and you kiss her! I mean, knock your self out! You just take her... then kiss her. Then kiss the crap out of her!"  
Viola: She's The Man

* * *

"We need to talk"

Gabriella knew that the phrase wasn't a good one and coming from Sharpay and what she had told her. It didn't sound good at all. She couldn't even comprehend what she was going through. What was going through her mind but she knew it was obviously going to be hard and it wasn't going to be good.

"Go ahead" Gabriella instructed dropping the pen she was holding and meeting the blonde's intent stare. Gabriella had come to the library to catch up on some homework and it had currently been a week since Sharpay had told her that she was pregnant. Even though Sharpay was her friend she couldn't help but wonder about Troy. All of the time. How she was getting tired of how things were between them. They would hug for long periods of time, and he would hold her hand, kiss her on the forehead.

But he just wouldn't kiss her fucking lips.

And she didn't know why.

It was practically driving her insane.

"I've decided." The way Sharpay had said it, it was so final. The truth was that Sharpay hadn't been herself since she had told Gabriella the news. Her face was pale; her light chocolate brown eyes were slightly swollen and puffy constantly. Gabriella had come to the conclusion that it would have been from crying constantly on a night. After all if Gabriella had been in this situation? She would have been crying nonstop, all day, every day.

Gabriella's dark chocolate gaze stared at the light chocolate waiting in anticipation. Sharpay breathed deeply a few times before her eyes became still. "I want you to come with me."

Her eyes shut almost in pain. She knew now what was going to happen. Sharpay was going to abort the living thing inside of her. "Are you sure that's what you want to do?"

Sharpay reached her hand up to her blonde hair that had been constantly hidden in a pony tail since Gabriella had found out Sharpay was pregnant, again she had come to the conclusion that she had more important things on her mind than to worry about how she was going to wear her hair or how she was going to dress. "I'm as sure as I'll ever be. Gabriella, I can't have a baby. I just can't. It's not possible. Will you be there? Will you come with me?"

Gabriella was still the only person that knew about Sharpay's pregnancy. And of course she had kept her promise that she wasn't going to tell a soul about it, Sharpay hadn't told Zeke and she hadn't told Taylor or Kelsi yet. Gabriella assumed that it was just hard for her. Well of course it was going to be hard for her. Maybe she felt better because Gabriella was kind of a stranger? And she felt more comfortable telling her things?

Gabriella reached over her tan hand to touch Sharpay's to comfort her. "Of course I will be there"

Sharpay smiled gratefully and then placed a hand to her heart; because of course it would have been hurting her. Her eyes glossed over in tears and she bit onto her lip to stop the threatening tears from falling. "Thank you" Sharpay whispered.

Sharpay brought her hand away from Gabriella's, and sighed deeply. "So how's the situation with Troy?" She attempted to change the subject. Since Sharpay had told Gabriella her secret she had decided to tell Sharpay about her own. Well she and Troy weren't really a secret. They weren't even an item. But she wanted them to be.

"I don't know. The flirting is great yeah who wouldn't love to flirt with Troy Bolton? But I just want... I want..." She attempted to put into words what she wanted to say.

"You want it all?" Sharpay filled her head with words. But she did. Of course she did. Like she said who wouldn't want it all with Troy Bolton. She wanted to wake up beside him on a morning and go to bed lying next to him on a night. How fucked up was that? She was only 17.

"Yeah" Gabriella sighed. It was like it was a sin to finally have admitted it. "I'm screwed though aren't I?"

Sharpay's waxed eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Why are you screwed?"

Gabriella looked around to see the library was completely deserted. Her teeth sunk into her glossed bottom lip. "Because he doesn't want it all with me. And before you say of course he does why hasn't he kissed me yet?"

For the first time in from what Gabriella could remember she saw a genuine smile make its way onto Sharpay's pale face. "Because he's scared. But you didn't hear it from me"

_Troy Bolton? Afraid? _Sharpay had to be crazy. "What?"

A laugh escaped from Sharpay's pursed lips and she rested her hand on Gabriella's nonexistent bicep. "Okay so he's told me that he's scared about his feelings for you?"

Jesus. Was that for real? Even though Sharpay was being deadly serious she felt a beam break the moulds of her face. Troy Bolton had feelings for her? She had to have heard wrongly. "What?"

She was still smiling. It was weird how she could go from mere minutes before feeling sorry for Sharpay but in the next minute she was beaming that Troy Bolton, had actually said that he had feelings for her. "He said that he'd never felt things for a girl the way he feels for you, and he's scared. He also said that he wants to kiss you but he wants it to be perfect."

She was positive her heart was beaming at the same time. Troy Bolton wanted to kiss her, perfectly. _Perfectly. _She couldn't believe it. But any kiss with Troy Bolton would be perfect. "You're such a loud mouth"

Sharpay smiled in response to Gabriella's sarcastic insult but Gabriella still had the smile on her face. One that she knew would be on her face for a lot longer. "I know but its fine. You've been a good friend to me so..."

Gabriella smiled gratefully at Sharpay. She had come a long way in the time that she had been living there."Thanks." Gabriella's smile was ear to ear on her blemish free features.

There was a comfortable silence filling in the air. "Okay so I don't mean to be tit for tat here and you don't really have to tell me if you want. I've just been curious and..." Sharpay trailed off, the words left her mouth at 100 miles per hour.

Gabriella raised her eyebrows curiously. "Sharpay what is it?"

The two shared an intent stare as Sharpay was debating with whatever she was going to say. "Okay, I won't say a word I promise but...why don't you live with your parents?"

Gabriella looked straight down at the table they were sitting at and let out a slight chuckle. She was actually surprised that nobody had asked her in the time she had been there. But it was bound to happen right? She would be curious if a new girl had moved and had no mother and father and hadn't even mentioned them. "It's okay. Um, my mom died" As soon as the words left Gabriella's mouth Sharpay's eyes bulged in surprise. "And my dad left when I was three"

Sharpay's mouth hung open in shock her bottom lip moved as if she was going to say something. "Conversation killer huh?" Gabriella attempted to lighten the mood but Sharpay seemed to still be dumbfounded.

"I...I... Oh my god. Gabriella I'm so sorry" Sharpay apologized; Gabriella could tell she was genuine. "I should have never asked"

Gabriella shook her head rapidly. "No, it's okay. I'd be curious too"

Sharpay's tongue moved to the side to touch the corner of her mouth and she locked gazes with the brunette again. "Do you mind if I ask what happened?"

Gabriella shook her head. She didn't mind at all. Of course she was sad, but she couldn't really get sad over people she had never met. She couldn't remember either of them and sometimes it did upset her that she did have to grow up without them but she couldn't do anything about it could she? "Um... my mom died with cancer when I was 2 and obviously my dad had to step in and take care of us. My grams helped alot. But it must have been too much for him because when I was 3, he left. And I haven't seen or heard anything from him since. Um, then my grandma stepped in and moved in with us, looking after us until around 5 years ago and then she died."

Gabriella could feel the grapefruit sized lump swelling in her throat. Obviously because she hadn't had a mother or a father she had become insanely attached to her grandma and she could still remember when she found out that she had died. She felt helpless absolutely worthless like she didn't have anything to live for anymore. "I'm so sorry."

She shook her head. She didn't want her sorry's, not because she was a bitch it was just that sorry's weren't going to bring any of them back into her life. Not that she would ever want her father back in her life anyways. "Don't be. Seriously it's fine"

Gabriella now felt an awkward silence wash over the two, and she knew it was because Sharpay didn't have a clue what to say to her. That was the worst thing about telling people that she had grown up without her mom and her dad she just didn't feel that it was important. Well of course it was important because they were her mom and dad without them she... well she wouldn't have been born but she still felt that t was an awkward tale to tell.

"You and your sisters seem really tight" Gabriella felt a warm smile flash onto her face. They were 'tight'.

"Yeah, we're really close. I think it's probably because we've been through so much together you know?" Gabriella started to run her fingers through the markings on the table.

"Definitely. Um, listen I've gotta go so I'll call around and let you know when it's gonna be? If you're okay with that" Gabriella nodded her head before looking up at the blonde who was now standing behind the chair.

"Yeah that's fine um, you can call me you know if you ever need anything or you just want to talk. When nobody's around" Gabriella truly meant every word. She couldn't imagine how alone Sharpay must have felt at that time and she didn't want her to feel alone. They were friends.

"Thanks. I appreciate it. Oh and if you and Troy don't kiss soon I think I'll get two magnets and place them on your lips and let the force do the job"

Gabriella laughed softly. But the scary thing was

She thought she would have to do the same thing.

There was something about the place.

It just brought her comfort, although it was dangerous at the same time. The way the swings sounded as they moved slowly comforted her. But on the other side of things she knew it was dangerous and that excited her.

She had walked to the park to clear her mind and to get things into perspective. People had walked past her and just looked as if she was a weirdo sitting in a park. Well she was sitting in a park and it was kind of weird that she loved sitting there in the dark.

But in the distance she could see a figure walking towards her. Straight towards her. Oh no. Her stomach was shrinking. Shrinking so much it was in her throat. The figure wasn't walking around the park like the other people were. It was walking directly towards her. Well the figure she was certain it was a male. So he was looking towards her and it wasn't until he spoke that her stomach did jolts and the butterflies returned to her now expanding stomach.

"How many times do I have to tell you it's not safe for you to be here" She giggled at his protection over her. Well he was walking through there right? He sat down on the swing next to her, no gym bag evident. Maybe he knew she'd be here?

"And how many times do I have to tell you that you shouldn't be here either" She attempted to flirt with him and she saw the dazzling whites flash at her in a smile.

"I have to come here to make sure you're not. But clearly that didn't work" Gabriella's hand gingerly reached up to the chain and her body turned towards him so she could take his perfect features in more.

"So this is the part where you say you're taking me home right?" Gabriella asked and Troy smirked sexily and nodded his head.

"You've got me down to a tee" Gabriella giggled softly and stood up from the swing.

But Troy didn't.

He extended out his muscular arm and pulled onto her hand, she stumbled a little at the force as he was swinging on the swing at that moment in time. He pulled her towards him and she was now standing in the space between his legs. The swing slowed down and his built arm swung around Gabriella's back pulling her towards him. The sparks were again shooting through her body. But she never came accustomed to them.

"I thought you wanted to take me home" Troy's head tilted slightly so now he was looking up into her chocolate brown eyes.

"I never said that. It would be right for me to take you home but I never said I wanted to" Her black eyebrows furrowed in confusion. What did that mean? He was constantly speaking riddles around her. Not that she was complaining.

"What does that mean?" She chuckled and reached her arms up to attach themselves to his broad shoulders.

"It doesn't matter" He mumbled and he loosened his grip around her and stood up from the swing, Gabriella however wasn't aware and her face was now slammed solid against his chest. She looked up slightly and she could feel his hot breath pouring onto her face.

Her lips parted slightly as she let out a breath her eyelids fluttered closed. Unable to comprehend how close they were. This was it. He was going to do it...

"Come on let's get you home" What the fuck was that? Gabriella shook her head to drop the thoughts of Troy's kissing her happening. She nodded solemnly and backed away from him.

He held out his toned arm for her to take, he curved his arm around hers as they started walking. She placed her hand into Troy's jacket pocket and his curved around the small of her back hugging her closer to him.

10 minutes into the journey neither had said a word to the other and Gabriella hadn't even noticed. She was too wrapped up into the cosmic bliss of being under Troy's arm. The silence wasn't awkward though, it was comfortable. It always was with Troy. She didn't understand why, but it was.

"You're kinda quiet tonight. What's wrong?" Troy broke the silence and put pressure on her hip where his hand was resting to illustrate that he was talking to her.

"Nothing. I'm fine" The truth was she didn't know what was wrong. There was something though. Maybe it was the lack of kissing with Troy? Maybe he didn't like her anymore? Well he had never confirmed that he did but her mind cast back to what Sharpay had told her.

What the fuck was going on?

"You shouldn't lie Miss Montez your nose is perfectly gorgeous the way it is" Gabriella felt an undoubted smirk creep onto her face and her cheeks flashed a bright shade of crimson.

"Excuse me" She practically sung, she had been thrown on a high. Troy Bolton had just said her nose was gorgeous. What a moron she really was.

One side of Troy's lip curved upwards in a smirk. "You heard me Montez."

Yeah she did but she wanted him to say it again! She really did. "I think I'm getting deaf can you say it again?"

Troy smirked sexily and hugged her closer to him again. "I said your nose is gorgeous"

The confident side was emerging from Gabriella again. She could feel it, her lips curved upwards into a pouted smirk. "My nose? Way to compliment a girl Troy."

"Ha-ha very funny. Nah, everything about you is absolutely gorgeous" Even though she had craved for him to say it, she still felt her face rush blood red and her cheeks become warm.

Either side of her cheeks pulled into a beam. "Really?"

Before she knew it Troy had halted and she turned her head to the right to see her house standing and a major déjà vu haze over her. Only this time she didn't want to be interrupted, and this time she actually wanted Troy to kiss her goodnight.

He wrapped his arms around the small of her beck, her cheek was rested against his left muscular pectoral, and distantly she could hear the steady rhythm of his heartbeat against her ear. "Really really"

She pulled her head away to look up in his stunning azure orbs a fire penetrating through to hers. So much different to the other night. Her eyelids fluttered closed in the heat of the moment.

Before she had chance to open her eyelids she felt the most out of this world feeling. Troy Bolton's lips were pushed up against hers. She couldn't believe it. The fire was burning throughout her body so much she thought she was going to pass out from the heat. The butterflies in her stomach were back again with a vengeance. They were fluttering so hard she felt like they were going to come into her mouth. Troy's pieces of heaven were squeezing against hers. Gabriella wrapped her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss that she was now breathing into.

Troy's tongue tickled over her bottom puffy lip, and she wasn't going to dare deny him access. She opened her mouth and let Troy discover her in a new way. Her own tongue snaked its way into Troy's wet cavern and discovered the crevices and crooks of Troy's mouth. His hands were pulling her closer to him if that was humanely possible.

She couldn't describe how good a kiss with Troy Bolton had felt.

She felt like the world was going to dissipate beneath her feet but as long as Troy had his arms around her and was kissing her like he was now she wouldn't be bothered.

As quick as it happened Troy pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. His eyes were still closed along with hers. "Wow..."

Gabriella laughed lightly. Without any sound erupting, it felt like it would be a crime if she would break the silence code between them. "I know..."

Gabriella's eyelids fluttered open and saw the crystal blue bore down into hers. "I can't believe I waited so long to kiss you"

Yeah neither could she! Gabriella's beam flashed again and she wrapped her arms firmly around his stone torso. "Tell me about it"

They were both still whispering. The scene being too intense. He pulled his forehead away from her own and placed his arms around her back, lying in the middle. Holding her in place close to his chest. "Did anybody tell you about the fair tomorrow?"

What did that have to do with anything? He was still whispering of course. Taylor had mentioned something about a fair to her. That they would all be going but she didn't have a clue what it had to do with her and Troy Bolton. And the fact that he had just kissed her. "Yeah, why?"

He seemed to sense her confusion as he chuckled ever so quietly and pressed his lips to the tip of her nose. "You wanna go together? Well everyone else will be there but I'll give you a ride if you..."

He trailed off and Gabriella pressed her index finger to his lips to silence him. If her beam got any wider it would break off from her face. "I'd love to go with you"

She pressed her lips to his quickly. It was quick and sensual but it was just as good as the passionate one they had just shared. "Really?"

He smirked lovingly down at her and she unlocked her hands from his back and grabbed his own hands that were resting on her back and laced them together. "Really. Really" She copied his saying from earlier in the night where she had been bothered about something and nothing and now she was on cloud nine. "Well this is me"

Her words copied the other night when he had nearly kissed her, and at that moment she was glad they had waited. She didn't know why but she couldn't wait to discover more about Troy Bolton's lips. "Goodnight" He whispered to her.

He moved his head ever so slightly and looked away so that he wouldn't have to kiss her but there was a slight pout on his face. She chuckled slightly and moved in to kiss his cheek but as she did he moved his own face and his lips caught hers again.

She giggled as she usually did, and then looked up into the crystals that made her stomach jolt every time she looked up into them. "Goodnight"

Gabriella turned on her heels and started to walk up the stairs that lead to her house. When she reached the porch she turned to see he was still there. He held two fingers to his lips and then swayed them away. Gabriella knew he was blowing her a kiss. She rested her back against the door and opened the handle without removing her eyes from him.

She slithered her body through the gap and then pressed her back up against the door a squeal and grin originating from her mouth.

"Who's the guy?" A male voice brought her from her moment of bliss. Dan was standing right infront of her with a smirk on his face. Gabriella knew that he had probably been watching and he was holding himself back from laughing at that minute.

"He's my guy"

* * *

**A/N: You know like I said I would be trying to keep foward on my chapters? Well I'm only 1 infront now. I can't help it! I'm not writing but uploading! Cant help it! Things are really bad for me at the moment not like you want to know! Lol. But I just want to thank you for reading + reviewing. I do read every review that you write to me and I can now identify the regulars that review every chapter! Thank you so much! This chapter was really hard to write because I'm a perfectionist lol but I hope you can tell I worked really hard! + it was also fun at the same time. I hope you like it :) **


	14. Officially Yours

"Well, love is a gift, a lot of people don't remember that. So, you two better brace yourselves for a whole lotta ugly comin' at you from a neverending parade of stupid"

Motormouth Maybelle - Hairspray

* * *

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" She exclaimed.

Her breath was coming in spasms.

To say she was panicking was an understatement.

"Will you just calm down. It's a fair. You're gonna be fine" Cheryl attempted to sooth her worries. But it wasn't just a fair was it. It was officially a date with Troy Bolton. He was picking her up, and taking her home. She was treating it as a date. She hoped that he saw it the same way.

Well they had kissed right? So technically this would make them on their first date tonight. And fuck, it scared the shit out of her. It really did.

Maybe this would be the night they turned into something more? Her whole body was writhing in anticipation. "No it's not just a fair though is it? Oh my god. What can I wear?"

Since she had moved to Albuquerque she had never been so bothered about clothes in all of her life. But now, she was absolutely obsessed with what she was going to wear. "Gabi, do you seriously think he's gonna care about what you wear?"

Hold on a minute. Who said she was talking about Troy Bolton?

Her eyebrows knitted in confusion. "I can tell what you're thinking. Go out naked he'll like that"

Gabriella shot daggers in her sister's direction. Her eyes scrunching together so tight they were like slits in her head. "Get real"

Cheryl chuckled throatily. Gabriella had been getting ready for around 2 hours. And Troy was scheduled to pick her up within the next half hour and she still hadn't decided what she was going to wear. "Well what do you wanna wear?"

Gabriella narrowed her eyebrows. What kind of a question was that? "If I knew the answer to that I wouldn't be throwing a fit would I?"

Cheryl walked into Gabriella's closet and encouraged her to sit on the edge of the bed. Gabriella was washed over with déjà vu; it was completely inevitable this would always happen. Why the fuck was she so nervous? She had already kissed Troy so what did it matter? It didn't did it?

"Gabriella you're over reacting" She really wasn't! But she thought she would have been alot worse if it would have just been her and Troy going out on a date.

"No I really don't think I am" She picked up the bottle of water that was sitting on the side and took a drink from it to steady her nerves.

All of a sudden a bombard of clothes flew in her direction; her body flinched at the impact of the clothing hitting her. Not that it hurt, it was just a shock. "Now you wear them don't complain and I want to see you downstairs in 5 minutes we'll go through what to do and not to do"

Her eyes widened and her lips stuck together into a straight line. She was stunned by how forceful her sister was. Cheryl's footsteps lightly touched the hardwood but she could still hear the echo of them as they walked closer to the stairs.

"DO IT!" Gabriella laughed lightly at how they were telepathically connected. Well they weren't but it was funny how she knew that Gabriella was still sitting on the bed, the clothes covering her.

10 minutes later, Gabriella found herself sitting on the arm of the couch looking out of the window reflexively to see if Troy was sitting in his car or something, too scared to come in. Yeah, Troy Bolton scared? She was hoping for too much now.

"You ok?" The only masculine voice in the house asked her. Dan was standing in the archway that connected the living room and the conservatory together.

"Yeah, fine" She responded distantly. Her head swivelled to look towards the clock. And she was that nervous and not listening to anyone else she was sure she could hear the loud echo of the tick tock of the pointer turning.

"Okay so what we're going to do is" Cheryl's voice instructed as she walked into room and sat herself on the chair. "When we were growing up your sisters and me, we made up a list of rules to follow when going out with a boy. But only a few apply to you"

Gabriella's eyebrows rose, and as if on cue her other two sisters walked into the room and sat on either arms of the chair that Cheryl was sitting in. A throaty laughed escaped from her pouted lips; they looked like Charlie's Angels or something.

"So do you think she's ready?" Alyssa questioned trying to be serious. Gabriella's entire body tensed up. They were going to talk about the birds and the bees. The talk, oh no. This was something she wasn't prepared for. Of course she had befriends before. She had never had sex but she had done things of the kind and her sisters knew that. So she could scratch that off of the list right?

"I think she is" Phoebe's head swivelled towards Gabriella in a staged kind of motion.

"Be yourself at all times" Cheryl chimed cheerily. Well of course she was going to be herself! Just because she had kissed Troy it didn't mean that she was going to be anything but herself.

"All dates are official." Alyssa informed her, her green eyes were bulging from her head almost as if to hypnotize her into believing the information.

"Yeah so just because you and Troy are going out with everybody else, it's still an official date for the two of you" All of this information was just making her stomach writhe more in fear. She was just kind of treating it to be as just an 'outing' with the rest of the guys but it wasn't.

It was an official date.

"Don't go too far. It's only the first date" What? As if she was going to do what? Have sex with him in the back seat of his car? Well she was pretty sure he could get her to do anything but she wasn't like that.

"What?" She started but she turned to the bay window, the sunset was low and she had to scrunch her eyes the light was so bright. But in the distance she could see a car pulled up on the pavement. And it wasn't just any car.

It was his car.

Her petite body immediately threw itself up from the chair and her chocolate spheres were enlarged from her head.

He was here.

He was here to pick her up.

And then, as if on cue... The door bell rang.

Her frame was shaking; her 'date' was standing through the threshold. The threshold was keeping them apart. She was looking from back and forth to her sisters to the wall where she knew the door was. As if the wall was going to create a hole so she could silently slip through.

An amused smile was plastered on Cheryl's face, her plucked eyebrows were raised amusingly and she darted towards the door. "I'll get it."

Oh no. She was going to answer the door, but she was too cemented to her spot she couldn't move, but she gathered the strength from inside of her and screamed loudly and darted towards the door, just as Cheryl's arm reached out to grab the handle Gabriella's limb reached out and grabbed her arm but it was too late. Cheryl had opened the door.

And there he was.

Her breath was taken away from her throat.

It wasn't like he was wearing anything out of the ordinary.

He was wearing a plain white t-shirt, but it hugged perfectly to the muscles beneath it. For the first time in her life she had begun to wonder what was beneath it. But what attracted her more was the way that the tan skin radiated like a light beneath it; it glowed to say the least. He looked like he had had his hair cut. Infact he had. Or he had it styled differently, she didn't know. He was wearing a pair of dark denim jeans. He seemed to know exactly what to wear to make her drool because she was pretty sure she was doing it. But she also knew what colours would bring out his earth shattering blue eyes.

And white was one of them.

Her lips broke out into a beam, her shiny white teeth dazzling at him as he looked awkwardly into the house. "Hi..." She let out in a breath.

His thin lips tugged into a closed mouth smile. A crooked smile. "Hey..."

Gabriella soon realised that her hand was still rested on her sisters who still had the same amused smile plastered across her face, but instead she was looking at Troy with a lustful eye, wait. Did she think he was hot? That was complete and utter cringe worthy.

"In an emergency, always listen to what you're best friend tells you" Cheryl whispered above Gabriella's waves. Her eyes jumped out of her head. Did she just say that? More importantly, did Troy hear her?

His face was curved upwards in a smirk as if he was undressing her with his eyes. So he didn't hear her. Gabriella smiled triumphantly and slyly manoeuvred her elbow to connect with her sister's stomach causing her to double over. Gabriella laughed slightly, "Come in, I just have to get my coat"

Troy obliged and stepped inside the house. Gabriella walked away and over to the steps. "So you're taking my sister out tonight huh?" No. Fuck no. Her sister was interrogating him. Fuck. She grabbed her coat as quick as possible and practically ran to where Troy was standing before he had the chance to open his mouth.

She could see in his crystal spheres that he was silently thanking her for getting him out of that hell, the hell that was her family. Of course she loved them but fuck, they were embarrassing. "Right. I'm going; I'll call you when I'm on my way home. I love you and don't wait up"

She attempted to get the sentence out so quick so she could get out of the door; she turned her body and backed into Troy's forcing him out of the hell hole. "Uh excuse me" What did she want now? Gabriella groaned, and heard Troy laugh slightly from behind her. She turned her body around to look at her and was met with an amused smirk. "No later than eleven thirty"

Gabriella nodded swiftly, her eyebrows rose in agreement. "Yeah yeah. Love you"

And with that, Gabriella practically threw Troy out of the house and down the steps to his awaiting car that seemed so far away. "BEHAVE!" Cheryl yelled to the two teenagers. Gabriella closed her eyes in embarrassment feeling her cheeks flash crimson, no scratch that. Blood red. She was pretty sure her full face was as red as a beetroot.

The familiar beeping sound of Troy opening his car, he opened the passenger seat and smiled at her. Then realization dawned on her. He hadn't spoken to her, well he had said hey but that was it. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? She folded her legs beneath her and sat on the black leather interior that was his car. There was silence and then she heard the clicking of Troy opening his own door and sitting down. He didn't start the ignition. They just let the comfortable silence wash over the two of them.

Finally unable to take it any longer. "I'm sorry about that. They aren't usually like that I... they just like to embarrass me I guess"

Troy chuckled lightly and grabbed the hand that was resting on the black leather and laced it with his own. "Don't worry about it"

Even his voice was intoxicating to her, even if it wasn't above a whisper. So badly did she just want to rest her lips onto his. It was as if he beat her to it. Sparks radiated from her head to her toes. His thin lips connected with hers. It wasn't a forceful kiss but it leaked with passion, it was gentle and careful. Gabriella's eyes were closed in bliss as she let the sparks take over her body and send tingles down her spine.

"God I wanted to do that since you opened the door." He then leaned away from her and left Gabriella wanting more. She wouldn't be bothered if she didn't even meet her friends at the fair. She could just make out with Troy. She wouldn't even care. He connected the silver keys in the hole and twisted it and Gabriella felt the engine roar to life. Troy's foot put pressure on the gas and the vehicle pulled off and started to drive down the road.

Gabriella had never wanted a journey to last longer.

"So I um, I brought 30 dollars will that be okay?" She questioned and she picked her legs up and rested them slightly on the material so she could look at the god like figure sitting in the driver's seat more closely.

Troy's chestnut eyebrows narrowed in confusion before he turned to look at her slightly but then turned his gaze back onto the road. "I told you we're going together. You won't need any money tonight"

Oh no. He was going to pay for her, wasn't he? He couldn't! She wouldn't let him. "Troy no you can't... I won't"

Troy smiled slightly and his masculine fingers reached over to hers and connected them together bringing them to rest on the gear box, like she was helping him drive the car. "Sssh, I'll pay for you and that's that"

How would he even have the money to pay for the both of them? He didn't have a job did he? Or was he a rich boy? She didn't even know, but better yet why was she thinking about it? "Are you sure I don't wanna be..."

Even though Troy's eyes weren't on hers she could see his eyebrows rising. "Gabi, shush okay. I'll pay for you. This is a date isn't it?"

It was like he was stating that it was a date to her. In the distance of her mind she could hear her sister's voice ringing throughout her ears. "_All dates are official"_. And he had just confirmed it. They were on a date. She thought she actually heard her heart skip a beat at the sound of Gabriella Montez and Troy Bolton being on a date.

"Definitely" She whispered and squeezed his large hand, making Troy smile tightly in response.

"I don't normally say this, and i don't want you to think I'm weird" He squeezed her tiny knuckles beneath his own matching her own actions but Gabriella knew he was silently confirming that he was going to say something about her. "I've been thinking about you all day, and all night last night I couldn't sleep."

Gabriella felt her heart twitch and she broke out into a beam. "I've been thinking about you all day too. And for the record you're not weird, no-body's ever been that sweet to me before"

Troy lifted their enclosed hands and pressed his lips against her cold skin. "You've had boyfriends before right?"

Oh no. Total conversation she didn't want to have. But she was interested in his old girlfriends she was positive that there would be a fair few but she was still curious. "One"

Troy didn't seem to be satisfied with her answer, his whole face frowned. "Just one?"

Gabriella sighed and nodded slowly. "Just one" She whispered and she could feel the two crystal blue eyes drilling into the side of her face, but for once she didn't want to meet them.

"I find that hard to believe. You're absolutely beautiful. What happened?" Gabriella felt her face blush crimson. He said she was beautiful. Although she was in the middle of a conversation she really didn't want to have, he just said she was beautiful. He had said she was gorgeous but now he said she was beautiful. Her heart was on cloud nine. Nothing could have brought her down.

"It was just a rough break up" She explained. Troy must have sensed that she didn't want to go any further as he nodded solemnly before turning the car and halting it on the gravel. In the distance she could see the outlines of 5 people standing around the entrance.

* * *

The bright lights illuminated the fair. She could see the reflection of them in Troy's beautiful eyes. "Come on then"

Gabriella sighed in disappointment that the journey was over. That was the last time she would spend with Troy alone for a couple of hours.

She officially couldn't wait for the ride home.

An hour later Gabriella, Troy, Taylor, Zeke, Sharpay, Kelsi and Chad were all sitting on a bench eating burgers, Gabriella and Sharpay were sat tightly on the end of the bench so no one else could hear what the two were saying.

"Its next week" Sharpay informed her and Gabriella saw her eyes haze over in a clear liquid.

"You sure it's what you want?" Gabriella picked up her burger and took a bite out of it, Sharpay nodded slightly.

"Yeah, it's what I want" Gabriella had learnt that Sharpay still hadn't informed anybody else her pregnancy. She had told her that she was going to do it in her own time. She just needed to deal with it herself first.

"Hey" An exasperated voice came from behind her before jumping down at the side of her and touching his hand against her leg. From the impulses and sparks she was feeling she could tell that it was Troy straight away. The only thing that worried her was how long had he been stood there? Had he listened to her and Sharpay?

"So are we all going on the big wheel huh?" Chad called enthusiastically. "Come on Evan's you've been quiet all night what's wrong?"

Sharpay's eyebrows rose and fell, her lips pouted together, Zeke was looking at her with pure concern written on his face. But Gabriella knew, from what Sharpay had told Gabriella it was a rule that they weren't allowed to communicate with one another infront of everyone else, well not in any way other than a friend. Stupid? Gabriella thought so too.

"Nothing. Everything's great. Fabulous" Sharpay's tired milky brown eyes were trained onto the burger that was sitting infront of her that had gone untouched.

Nobody seemed satisfied with Sharpay's answer but they seemed to drop it. Chad picked up his burger and bit into it, and a drop of ketchup fell onto his t-shirt. "Fuck!" He groaned, trying to wipe it off but he only smudged it and it stood out like a sore thumb. "Hoops have you sent you're application off for U of A yet?"

Gabriella knew that Troy was looking at going to U of A, he had told her so. And he was like, amazing at basketball so he deserved it. Troy cleared any congestion from his throat and the hand that was resting above Gabriella's knee beneath the table began to draw circles soothingly. But she didn't need soothing did she? "Um... not yet"

Chad seemed to be alarmed at Troy's response. "So are we going on the wheel then?" Taylor seemed to sense that there would be an unwanted conversation washing over the group of them.

Gabriella teamed up with Troy and sat in a basket on the wheel and as soon as she sat down she felt her insecurities rise. She was scared of heights.

Really terrified.

"What is it?" He seemed to know that she was feeling insecure, her eyes turned to look at him. Rather than looking down.

"Would you hold it against me if I said that I was afraid of heights" Gabriella laughed lightly not knowing what else to do. It was more of a nervous laugh.

Troy wrapped his arm around her and she felt his muscle contract around her shoulder. He hugged her closer to him and her head rested against the left hand side of his chest, in the distance she could hear his heart beating. In perfect sync with her own. "Never"

Troy pressed a kiss onto the cushion of her black hair. "So what was that about college?"

He sighed deeply and kept Gabriella's head pressed against his chest. As if he was trying to shield her from the height or weather he was just holding her close to him so he could take as much of her in as he possibly could. "I'm just confused about what to do, where to go. You know?"

Gabriella hadn't even thought about college. She had thought that she would probably take a year out after she had graduated from school and then think about college then because she had only just settled in Albuquerque so she didn't want to be moving again. "This is simple. Close your eyes"

Troy obeyed her and closed his eyes and sighed deeply. "Look right back into your mind" She whispered, but even over the wind that was whipping over the two he seemed to close his eyes even tighter. "What do you feel like you're born for?"

Troy opened his eyes and Gabriella pulled her body from his embrace to look him in the eye. "Basketball, of course"

Gabriella smiled tightly and lowered herself back down onto Troy's waiting embrace. "Well there you go then"

Gabriella swore she heard Troy smile from above her. "You're not looking down right?"

Well that comment just made her want to look down. Her head lifted from Troy's stone chest and looked down. Her eyes jumped in fright and her body stiffened. Troy manoeuvred his body so his chest was touching her arm and she felt it vibrate as he laughed over her.

"Come here." He coaxed, but she didn't have to go anywhere near him, the built trunk of his body hovered over her as he gingerly grabbed her chin and pulled her face to him. His lips pressed to hers, it wasn't a hunger kiss, but it was just as good.

Troy moved his hand from her chin and rested it on the curve of her hip. Gabriella breathed into the kiss and she pushed her groin up against his.

And he was as hard as rock.

She felt a proud smile onto her face. She had made him hard. Little Gabriella Montez had made _the _mighty Troy Bolton hard, and it wasn't the first time but who was counting? His tongue ran over her bottom lip, asking her for entrance. She didn't even think about rejecting him and pushed her own tongue into his mouth. The sparks she was filling just about killed the fear of looking down. But it felt dangerous at the same time, but safe.

She felt safe.

She had once been to a valentines fair with her sisters and grams and she went on the big wheel and it broke down at the top. When she was at the top, she had never cried so much in all of her life. She wouldn't have been more scared if a murderer was chasing her.

She hadn't been on one since.

Troy's hands were now running down her side and her arms were wrapped around his neck playing with the stray hairs. Her fingers were taking turn in making a rhythm against his golden skin. He reluctantly pulled away from her but he was still close enough that she could hear his hot hitched breathing from above her. "I could kiss you forever"

As the words left his mouth she felt them tickle against his skin in the form of his hot breath. She smiled in response and her nostrils flared at the same time. "Forever works for me"

Troy chuckled lightly and pressed their lips together. They lingered there for a minute, but she wouldn't have traded it for anything. "Gabi, I...I...w-want you"

Oh no. He wanted to have sex with her on the big wheel. Her eyes bulged in surprised and his did also, his mouth opened as if he wanted to speak but the words weren't leaving, his beautiful head shook rapidly. "No.... fuck no I didn't mean that, I mean, fuck I'm sorry. I just... Gabi...I"

This was it. Was he going to ask her out? What was he doing? Her body was writhing and waiting in anticipation.

He smiled gingerly and inhaled a deep breath, his eyes closed in the process. "I know this sounds cheesy, but do you wanna be together like as in a couple?"

Gabriella's heart was soaring through the sky like a shooting star, it was out, and it was up there. And she never wanted it to come back down. All sources of oxygen were cut from her lungs and the cavern of her mouth dried up like the Sahara desert. Seconds were turning into hours as she looked at him dumbfounded. She felt like a child at 18 months old learning how to talk. She could think of what she wanted to say YES!!! In her mind but saying it wasn't working.

Suddenly a beam broke out onto her face, and her thin arms threw themselves around his sturdy neck. She felt his own hands wrap around the small of her back producing warmth. "Of course I will"

Troy pulled his sturdy body away from hers momentarily to look at her like she was crazy. "Really?"

Now it was her turn to look at him like he was crazy. As if he was asking her if she meant it. It wasn't every day a sex god like Troy Bolton asked a girl like her out. "Why would you doubt me?" She chuckled.

His hypnotic laugh escaped from his lips and he pressed his electric lips to her forehead. Gabriella closed her eyes in response.

She had a boyfriend.

Troy Bolton was her boyfriend.

"I guess that makes you my girlfriend then?" He smiled blissfully as Gabriella tried her best to look down but his grip was tightened around her like he would never see her again.

Gabriella smiled blissfully and closed her eyes before speaking. "I wouldn't have it any other way"

* * *

**A/N: I liked this chapter I had a lot of fun writing it! I hope you guys did too! Thanks for reading and reviewing and you know what to do :) **


	15. There's No Place Like Us

**A/N: Okay before you read! I would just like to tell you that this chapter is probably the worst one so far. I just wanted to rush it and get it out for reasons that I'm going to tell you right about now. Lol! I have to go into the hospital tomorrow for an operation, I only just found out today. Its pretty major so I won't be updating for a while, the longest I'll be out for is a week! I'll still probably be around if people want to PM me or ask me to read any of their own stories. I just probably won't have the energy to work and update. Really sorry! But I'd just like to say that I don't encourae abortion in any way shape or form nor am I against it this story line just sets up later events in the story! I hope you like the chapter But once again I'm really sorry because I know that to be honest it's quite crap. I did rewrite it though so imagine what it was like before! See you guys soon :) Send me your reviews to make me smile xD **

* * *

Like The Clouds You  
Drift Me Away, Far Away, Yeah  
And Like The Sun You  
Brighten The Day, You Brighten My day, Yeah

Colby O Donnis Ft Akon + Kardinal Official - Beautiful

* * *

The silence was deafening.

There was no sound of music. No sound of people talking. No sounds of people fidgeting in their chairs. No flipping of pages in a magazine.

It was like waiting for death.

Though distantly if she listened close enough she could hear the shaky inhaling and exhaling of the blonde that was sat next to her.

Gabriella had never felt so awkward in her life. She hadn't slept at all the night before, just contemplating how she could make things better for Sharpay. And she hadn't come up with a single thing. Gabriella had picked Sharpay up that morning, lending her sister's car. She had told them that she wouldn't be going to school, that she had something to do but to trust her and she wouldn't have not being going to school if it wasn't no reason out of the ordinary. And they seemed to believe her.

The room itself that the two were sitting in was just like a waiting room. Ironic really. A sand shade paper covered the walls. There were 4 seats, and Gabriella and Sharpay were sitting in the middle two, leaving two different grey cushioned seats next to the pair of them. Opposite them was a marble desk with a receptionist behind it who had looked at the two of them like they were pieces of shit. And in the corner of the room was a mahogany door.

One that Gabriella couldn't wait to get out of.

And she had just been worried about the girl who was sitting next to her and how she hadn't said a word since they had arrived there. Sharpay had a baby pink cap covering her head, shielding Gabriella from looking into her pain stricken face. Two platinum blonde pigtail braids were hanging from either side of the cap down by her ears. A white t shirt covered her torso, which hugged to her flat stomach which made Gabriella wonder. What was inside there? Of course she knew it was a baby, well it wasn't a baby more like a collection of cells. But still there was something there. Indigo sweats hugged her thighs and her baby pink cell was clutched tightly in her hand. And every so often it would come to life with light and vibrate profusely in Sharpay's tiny hand.

Gabriella didn't have a clue what to say to her. She just wanted to make things right for her. Try and take her pain away, never had she seen anybody so broken. She had been broken herself but never had she witnessed another's pain so big, so horrendous. Gabriella opened her glossed lips to say something but she was cut off by the loud vibrations of Sharpay's cell phone.

Sharpay groaned and her unmanicured hands reached up to her forehead. It was the first time that Gabriella had seen Sharpay's nails unmanicured, unpainted and not even filed. It was a miniscule thing but Gabriella noticed it. She must have been in pain. Gabriella couldn't comprehend what she was going through. "Zeke..."

Sharpay's voice was so tired, so drained, so tiny. She whispered like it would be a sin if she opened her mouth any further and said anything else. The pain that seeped through Sharpay's usual high pitched happy tone was enough to make Gabriella want to open the flood gates for her.

"You not gonna answer?" Gabriella asked in a tired voice, she was exhausted.

Sharpay sighed deeply and shook her head rapidly. "No, he'll just wanna know why I haven't answered any of his calls and why I've been off and shit like that"

Gabriella did kind of feel sorry for Zeke. He potentially could have been a father but he didn't even know about it. And after today was over he would never have the chance to. "He cares y'know"

She did feel out of place saying that, but she did want to fight Zeke's corner, a little bit. She knew that she had come to support Sharpay but she did feel that she should have spoken to Zeke or something. "I know, that's why I partly feel so guilty because he deserves to know." Sharpay's voice broke while she spoke. "You should check yours y'know. Troy might be worried"

Gabriella hadn't even thought about her boyfriend. _Her boyfriend. _They had been together a week and everything had flown by so blissfully. It was like the honeymoon period, minus the sex. They had made out but nothing had gone further. He was always so kind and considerate towards her. Always making sure she was okay and she was pretty sure that the fact she wasn't in school was killing him as much as it was killing her. She had seen him every day and some people would think that they would have got sick of each other... well they didn't. "Are you sure you wanna do this Sharpay?"

A pained laugh came from Sharpay's unglossed plump lips. "I couldn't keep the baby even if I wanted to. There's college, there's the fact that me and Zeke aren't in a relationship we just... well we just have sex that's all it is. And if I did keep this baby yeah I have money to support it and I have people to look after it. I just can't. I'm 17." Sharpay illustrated her rant by putting pressure down on one finger after the other in a list.

"Do you want to keep this baby Sharpay?" Gabriella asked hoping for an honest answer.

"It doesn't matter" Sharpay mumbled, looking down to the hideous shapes on the carpet.

"It does..." Gabriella was cut off by the vibrations of her own cell phone.

"You should get that, it'll be Troy." Gabriella was contemplating weather to ignore it or not, but the helplessly falling for Troy Bolton side of her was coming out. "I'll be back"

Gabriella walked to the mahogany door and was almost blinded by the sunlight that entered her vision. But it was still cold, the cold air sliced over her body like a whip. She pulled out the cell phone as quick as she could so he wouldn't hang up. She smiled brightly when she saw his face on the caller ID. "Hey..."

She could hear the distant ragged breathing of Troy's and gathered that he had just finished a workout at school. But it did make her wonder what it would be like to have Troy's breathing like that hovering over her. "Hey, you're okay right. I mean you're not sick or anything?"

His voice was laced with concern and panic. "Calm down, I'm fine. I'm not sick"

Gabriella could imagine his gorgeous eyebrows narrowing in confusion at her last comment. "So why aren't you in school?"

She bit her puffy lip; she didn't want to lie to him. She really didn't. "I, um I just had some things I had to do" Gabriella had never been a good liar and she didn't want to lie to Troy. Instantly she felt guilty. Like her body would be swallowed by flames, like she had committed adultery or something.

"Oh, okay. Is it sad that I miss you?" Gabriella chuckled her sweet laugh on the end of the conversation.

"The feelings mutual don't worry. What are you doing tonight anyways?" Gabriella pondered. Hopefully he would say he wasn't doing anything. So she could see him or something.

"Seeing you." Gabriella couldn't help but feel the smile flood onto her face, her wish had come true.

"You're ambitious." She teased, and she could hear him laugh lightly on the other end of the conversation.

"Well if you don't want to see me then that's fine..." Troy attempted to taunt to her. Gabriella's head shook rapidly and the ends of her hair tickled the olive skin on her shoulder.

"NO" She practically screamed down the phone. "I want to see you too"

His laugh vibrated through the phone line at Gabriella's desperation. "I'll meet you at our place yeah?"

Her eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "We have our place?"

His laugh entered her ears again. "You'll work it out; I'll see you there around 6? If that's okay?"

Gabriella smiled tightly. "Yeah that's totally okay. Can't wait"

She could imagine Troy smiling at her. "See you later"

Gabriella clicked the phone off and placed it back into her jeans pocket and went back into the room to see that it was completely empty. Apart from the receptionist sitting at the desk. "She went in just after you left." The strong British snobby accent bled through her ears. "She shouldn't be long"

Gabriella silently kicked herself for not being there when Sharpay went in; to not reassure her that everything would be okay. She wasn't waiting that long. Only around 2 minutes before she felt a small tap on her shoulder followed by a hysterical sob. Gabriella felt her heart break at the sight of the blonde.

The salty tears were streaming down her face like there was no barrier between feeling happy and feeling sad. Sharpay silently pleaded with Gabriella and Gabriella held her tiny hand out to Sharpay's bare arm and rubbed up and down soothingly. "You okay?"

Sharpay sobbed in response before trying to take a breath. "Get me out of here?"

Gabriella knew that it wasn't a question. It was like a demand to get her out of there so she would never have to look back. "Come on let's get you home"

* * *

"You sure you're okay?" He questioned.

Although they had been going out for a week Troy still couldn't comprehend how lucky he was to be going out with such a beautiful girl like her. Corny? Yeah he knew but he still couldn't help but wonder what it was that attracted her to him. It was like a magnetic pull. Whenever he saw her he was just drawn to her, drawn to be touching her or kissing her. To flaunt to the world that she was his.

And the scary thing was he never wanted to let her go.

"I'm good now that you're here." There was something about her tone that wasn't right. She looked exhausted. Even when she was speaking to him, he knew that she was silently knowing that it was one minute closer to getting to her bed.

He had his arm wrapped securely around her waist and they were both sat on a bench in the park. Gabriella was that exhausted that she had her legs up on the bench and her arm touching Troy's chest resting above where his heart was beating. They were both watching the sun setting over in the distance."Troy can I ask you something?" Just the sound of her voice intoxicated him.

"Course you can" He responded pressing a kiss to the top of her forehead.

"Who was your last girlfriend?" He knew she was probably just wondering, but it actually took him a while to think about it.

"Um, she was called Lauren, she moved here for a while with her mom but she got transferred so she moved" He explained, he assumed this wouldn't make Gabriella uncomfortable after all she had initiated it hadn't she?

"Is that why you broke up?" She pondered and her index finger started to make circles on his chest, tickling his skin causing sensations that he would never get tired of.

"Yeah part of it. We just didn't get along really, at first we did but after a while we just started to argue and shit" Troy and Lauren had been together for around 3 months, it had been good for the first 2 weeks? Well it was longer than that about the first month and a half and then things just got worse; she would get jealous of him being with girls, just being around Taylor and Sharpay. She didn't like it. So he decided to end things with her and then around a week later her mother had announced that the family was moving. This was a bonus if you asked him.

"I see" She responded before suppressing a yawn and Troy chuckled at her attempts to show that she wasn't tired.

"What about you?" Gabriella flinched underneath Troy's arm, which didn't go unnoticed by him.

"Um, he was called Luke and we dated for around 6 months. We ended about 6 weeks before I moved here" She explained in a small voice. So many questions were swimming around Troy's brain.

"Why did you break up?" Troy lowered his head so he could see hers and he saw her eyes close at the question.

"Um, it's not really important" He knew that Gabriella didn't want to answer the question and he knew that it was a rough break up. Did she cheat on him or something?

"Hey tell me. I'm not gonna judge you." He squeezed her body that bit closer to him.

Gabriella laughed nervously and sat up so she could look at him, he could almost see the pain in her eyes. "You promise you won't tell anyone?"

Troy shook his head at her and swept the hair that was suppressing him from looking at his gorgeous girlfriend. "I swear" He held his two fingers up to indicate a 'scouts honour' sign.

Gabriella inhaled a deep breath and closed her eyes. Now he was getting nervous. What did she do bite off his dick or something? "He... he, um" She laughed out of nervousness again. "He hit me"

Troy's eyes enlarged to the size of two moons and he felt his blue spheres turn a colour of grey, or rather red. He had hit her? What the fuck! Who the fuck did that? Who did that to such a beautiful girl like her? She was too sweet for Troy to even think of saying anything bad to her. Ever. "What?"

Gabriella laughed nervously again and bit down on her luscious kissable lips. "Yup."

Troy shook his head in disbelief, his mouth hung open stupidly, he couldn't think of the words to say he could just feel rage rising inside of him. Rage to hunt this dick down and beat him to death for hitting her. Who the fuck did that anyways? Well he had already said that hadn't he. "What the fuck happened?"

Gabriella seemed to look up at him with a wary eye. "You're mad?"

How could an angel like her think he was mad? Well he was, he was fucking fuming but at the bastard that had ever laid a finger on her. Not her. He didn't think he could ever be mad at her. He gently pushed his lips against hers to reassure her. "I could never be mad at you okay? Tell me what happened"

Gabriella smiled at him which just made his insides melt. How could anyone want to bring harm to her? "Um well we had been doing stuff y'know. But we never had sex. I mean we were only together for 6 months and it just didn't feel right y'know?" He nodded at her question. "So we were hanging out at his house and there was so much shit going on with the family and I just went there to escape from it all and we were just kissing and he tried to y'know force himself on me and I said no and he said that I was moving so we wouldn't have any other chance." Troy's rage was rising inside of him. He forced himself on her? What kind of a fucker did that?

"Anyway I kept saying no and I got up to leave the house. I really thought he was gonna force me to have sex with him but he hit me" She explained and Troy heard her voice crack at the end of her sentence.

He felt his heart melt at the sight of her. She just looked so vulnerable. "He just did it once right?" He asked as if it would make it better.

She nodded slowly and her chocolate brown gaze met his. "He didn't have a chance to do it again. My sisters ordered me to stay away from him and then we were gone before he had the chance to find us"

Troy smiled sadly and silently thanked that her sisters had protected her. "What did he do?" The question really meant what did he do _to her? _

"He um, he punched me." She laughed. He didn't know why the hell he was laughing all he wanted to do was hunt the prick down. "He burst my nose. I ran all the way home. He tried to come around to the house a few times to apologize but Dan went out and threatened that if he ever came near me or us again that it would be the last thing he'd ever do"

Troy grabbed her small frame and pulled her towards him in a bone crushing hug, like he could make it all better. Even though it was in the past. "I'm sorry" He knew that he shouldn't get mad, but he couldn't help it. But what could it change?

"Don't be. It's in the past now" How could she be okay with it? Troy felt nothing more than to beat the asshole to death.

"Hey" Gabriella sat up to meet his piercing blue gaze. "I want you to know that I would never ever hurt you okay? Physically or emotionally" Gabriella smiled at his last comment. "I promise"

Gabriella smiled tightly and pressed her lips to his neck. "I'd never doubt that you would"

Troy couldn't contain himself any longer; he gingerly pressed his lips against hers, he wanted to show his affection for her and wanted to silently promise her as their lips moved as one together that he would never hurt her. He couldn't believe anyone would ever want to hurt her. Physically or emotionally. He pulled away breathlessly. "God you're so beautiful"

Gabriella closed her eyes and pecked her lips to his cheek. "So are you"

Troy couldn't help but feel a swell of emotion wash over him when he just looked at Gabriella. It was different, it was new. Different to any other girl he had been with before and certainly different from Lauren .

Little did he know he was falling for her, hard and at the speed of light.


	16. Use Somebody

**A/N: Hey again! I'm back! Sorry its been so long things have just been abit mental at the minute with my operation and stuff but I'm back now! And things should be back to normal. I like this chapter, i worked kinda hard on it so I hope you can tell. And review think of it as ure welcoming back present to me :) Ha Anyway Hope you enjoy :) **

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"All the people I deal with are scum. I'm a little scummy myself. You are not scum. That worries me"

Jacques Chevalier - Saving Grace

* * *

"So do you know what's wrong with her?" A curvy Taylor asked her.

Of course she knew. But she couldn't dare tell them that could she. It had been a week since Sharpay's appointment and the two of them had to go back around 5 days ago for a follow up appointment. Gabriella's small frame had risen with fear. She hated lying to people but yet as of late the lies had been pouring out of her mouth. "No..." _Lie._

"She's been so distant and she looks so..." Taylor paused to think of the words to say before...

"Spit it out Mckessie" Gabriella's eyes tripled in size. She didn't expect that. Her head whipped to the source of the voice. Sharpay's platinum blonde hair was bone straight; different to how she had ever seen it. She was wearing a baby pink blouse, maybe she was getting on with her life? And a pair of dark navy skinny jeans hugged to her thin figure.

Gabriella looked towards Taylor to see that her face was absolutely stunned, her eyes hadn't returned to their natural size and her mouth hung open stupidly as if she didn't know what to say. "I... I... Shar I..."

Sharpay's figure which had shrunk in the last few weeks was standing anticipating of what Taylor was going to say. Her face wasn't annoyed, her eyes were just wide as if she was trying to egg Taylor on and her head was shaking. "What? Taylor what?"

Gabriella awkwardly turned to look at Kelsi who was staring at the floor and trailing her leg through the carpet. "We're worried about you Sharpay"

Great. She said we. Taylor had now turned so her whole body was facing Sharpay's thinning one. "Well there's nothing to worry about okay. So let's just get to work"

The four of them had come to the recording studio in the school. Well, Kelsi, Taylor and Gabriella had. Sharpay had said that she would meet them there. Obviously Sharpay still wasn't herself because the girl that Gabriella had come to know was feisty and wouldn't put up with anybody's shit. "Shar, there clearly is okay. You've lost weight, you're pale. Honey are you sick?"

A manic fake laugh that Gabriella knew it was escaped from her lips. "If I was sick it would be so much better to fucking deal with."

Gabriella knew what was coming. It was like a bomb ticking waiting to go off. _Tick tock. Tick tock._

"What do you mean?" Taylor's midnight black eyebrows were narrowed in confusion scrunched together her rounded face shook in misunderstanding. _Tick tock. Tick tock. _

Gabriella couldn't help but admire how quiet Kelsi was being throughout all of this. She was just looking awkwardly down at the navy blue carpet. And Gabriella? One arm had a hold of the other arm, massaging as if it was going to get her out of the situation. Her straight dazzling white teeth were sunk into her bottom plump lip. _Tick tock. Tick tock._

"I've just had alot of things going on at the minute." Sharpay's voice was irritated but she was also shrugging her shoulders like it wasn't a big thing. When it was! It was a really big thing. Gabriella didn't know how she was keeping it together. Gabriella had seen dark days, days when she thought she wouldn't see night. _Tick tock. Tick tock. _

"Yeah we're you're best friends. Sweetie you need to talk to us." Taylor placed a comforting arm on Sharpay's skinny one.

"Tay, it's nothing okay." Sharpay tried to make things easier and she shot her glance to Gabriella to send her signal. _What do I do?_

Gabriella sensed the blonde's pain. It was condensing through the oxygen she was breathing; it filled the cracks in the walls. So much Gabriella thought they might explode. "Shar, clearly it's something. Did something happen with Zeke?" _Tick tock. Tick tock._

Another manic laugh released itself from her pursed lips. Her teeth then fumbled with her bottom lip. Maybe she didn't know what to do? _Tick tock. Tick tock._

"You could say that." She mumbled, Taylor looked up to her and mouthed what? Gabriella suddenly felt her mouth dry. She didn't know what to do. What could she do? She just shrugged her shoulders loosely. _Tick tock. Tick tock._

"Sharpay what's happened?" Taylor asked this time more forcefully. And then it was like an elastic band had snapped. Sharpay's body mechanically shot away from Taylor's.

The bomb had exploded.

"You wanna know what happened?" Sharpay's manic voice was twisted and bitter and not her own. Taylor almost took a step back in how bitter it sounded. "You really wanna know?"

This wasn't going to end well.

Taylor matched Sharpay's bitter tone. "Yes. Sharpay I really wanna know"

Sharpay nodded a few times and her nose scrunched while she nodded. "I was fucking pregnant." Gabriella closed her eyes in pain. It was out in the open now. Taylor and Kelsi were going to hate her for not telling them, Taylor would go and tell Chad and inevitably Chad would tell Troy. And then Troy would think she was an awful person for lying and ultimately break up with her. It was like her whole life had just flashed before her eyes. "Yes was fucking pregnant. I had an abortion okay. There you have it."

Gabriella looked at Sharpay and watched the waters escape from their prisons. Followed by another chuckle. "God I didn't think I could cry anymore"

She shifted her gaze towards the other two unknowing people. Kelsi's eyes were enlarged and her mouth was slightly opened. And Taylor, her mouth was hung open stupidly and her own eyes were glossed over with tears. "Shar"

Sharpay closed her eyes and the salty tears followed in response. "Don't, just don't"

Gabriella felt obliged to say something. She shouldn't have let Sharpay handle it alone. She just couldn't do that. "You okay?" She whispered carefully.

Taylor's head snapped up to look at the tan girl. "You _knew_ about this?"

Oh no. Taylor was going to shout at her. Sharpay shook her head rapidly and turned her body to face Taylor. "Taylor I couldn't face telling you or Kelsi, Gabriella was the only one that wouldn't judge me. I needed someone. Anyone"

Gabriella bit her puffy lip nervously, waiting in anticipation. They were going to shout at her they were going to scream and say that she had no right to be friends with them. Tell her to fuck off most likely. But instead Taylor must have sensed her insecurities and placed a comforting hand on her arm as if to say don't worry about it.

"Does Zeke know?" Kelsi's tiny timid voice asked the tearful blonde.

"I couldn't. I can't" Sharpay shook her head and the tears fell even more.

"I'm sorry." Taylor whispered and enveloped the thin blonde in her arms sideways. Sharpay looked away as if she was ashamed. Gabriella suddenly felt a vibration explode in her jean pocket. She pulled the cell phone from her pocket and smiled when 'TROY' read her screen. She held up her index finger symbolizing that she'd be back in a minute. She flipped up the phone and held it to her ear.

"Hello." She greeted in a sing song voice.

She heard Troy's velvet chuckle on the other end of the conversation. "Well hello there you." Automatically the tension that she had been feeling dissipated, just at the sound of his voice.

Gabriella chuckled and bit down on her bottom lip. "So you rang for a reason or you just wanted to hear my voice?" She loved to flirt with him she really did. And even if things really sucked at that minute in time, Troy always picked her back up.

"As much as I love to hear your voice, I was just checking that we're still okay for tonight?" Gabriella nodded even though he couldn't' see her. Tonight. Tonight was the night when Gabriella really knew whether he was for her or not. He was meeting her family.

And she was pretty sure she was more scared than he was.

"Um, yeah. We're good. You don't have to do this y'know" Gabriella wasn't sure whether she wanted him to do it or she wanted him to back out. Because of past experiences they had always been super protective over Gabriella and especially after her last boyfriend. Troy was bound to get interrogated. And she was dreading it.

Troy chuckled nervously on the other end of the phone. "I know. But I want to."

God damn Troy's parents, which for the record she hadn't met yet! For making him the good guy in wanting to make sure he was up to spec for her family. Gabriella groaned into the phone. Lolling her head around in the process.

"Fuck, Gabi are you trying to kill me with the groaning?" Troy asked in amusement.

Gabriella laughed sweetly. "I could do alot more do kill you in respect of the groaning. Just so you know"

Troy groaned and she could almost see his dazzling smirk as he was speaking to her. "You are trying to kill me"

Even t though he was making her smile at that moment in time she couldn't help but wonder what things would be like in a few hours time when they were sat around a dinner table, how embarrassing. She knew what her family was like and she didn't want them to scare Troy away. It was scary how much she was falling for him. It was like every second she was around him it was all the more intoxicating. It was like she discovered something new about him and she was falling for him. She couldn't even describe what it felt like to fall for him, but she knew she was. She couldn't describe the feelings she had for him, they were too complex. And it all skidded to one thing.

She was falling in love with him.

"So what time are we on for tonight then? Do I have to wear a coat and tie?" Gabriella laughed at his need to impress her family.

"Um, you can come by for around six or six thirty? And no you don't have to wear a coat and tie" She whispered, beaming down the phone.

The humour was laced into his tone as he spoke. "Okay. I'll see you later then?"

Gabriella nodded solemnly, knowing that he couldn't hear her. "Troy? Please don't let them scare you away"

She heard him sigh down the line. "You know what the scary thing is?"

Gabriella's black eyebrows rose curiously. "What?"

His slight laugh intoxicated her even more; even if she couldn't see him she could see the smile on his face. "I don't think anything could scare me away from you"

Gabriella smiled bashfully and felt a flash of crimson creep its way onto her rounded face. Even if he wasn't there he still knew how to make the butterflies set off flying in her small stomach. "I'll see you later wildcat"

And with that she put the phone down and walked back in to see the three girls smiling and laughing, the way things used to be.

"Oh hey you're back" Sharpay grinned. It looked like the first genuine smile she had seen in a while. Since Sharpay had told her she was pregnant actually.

"So are you gonna tell Zeke?" Kelsi pressed for the second time in the past hour.

Sharpay scoffed. "Tell him what that I was pregnant with his child and got an abortion without him even knowing about it?" She shook her head, the straight blonde hair swaying. "Never"

Neither Kelsi, Taylor, Sharpay or Gabriella realized there was another person listening to their conversation.

* * *

She couldn't do this.

Her sparkling white teeth were sunken into her bottom lip. Her small feet were tapping impatiently along the hardwood floor. Her small stomach felt like it was tied in knots, like a rope. Her eyes were shut tightly as she tried to soothe herself of what was about to happen. She was trying to exhale deep breaths to ease her nerves. The table was set. Alyssa had brought out her best 'china' just for Troy. But Gabriella didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Gabi, will you calm down? What do you thinks gonna happen?" Phoebe's soothing voice attempted to calm her. Her straightened her fell just below her shoulders, as she always either had it curled or tied back from her face. Her cheek bones were high, smiling at her nerves.

"Oh I don't know. You might scare him into the next century. Oh god" Gabriella placed her small hand onto her stomach as if the butterflies were going to stop poking into the surface of her stomach.

Phoebe smirked and laughed at Gabriella's nerves. Her brown eyes rolled and Phoebe brought her small hand and rested it on Gabriella's tan skin. "Honey. It's gonna be fine, I promise." Yeah sure it was. Now it was Gabriella's turn to obnoxiously roll her deep chocolate spheres.

"Whatever. What if he doesn't like the food? Or what if... what if... what if" She stumbled over her own words.

"What? What if what?" Phoebe pruned. "Honey, I've seen you two while I've been at the school, just the way he looks at you babe he's not gonna be scared away by us okay. We're not gonna scare him away. I promise you that. Troy seems to be a good guy and we just." She shrugged her bare shoulders. "We just wanna see how much of a good guy he is." Gabriella smiled happily. "And so when he proposes we can all sit down as a family and pick out the centrepieces." She added cockily.

Gabriella laughed lightly. When Troy proposed. Right like that was going to happen. "So just calm down. Okay, you're seventeen. You'll get wrinkles." Phoebe patted Gabriella's bare thigh, and walked back into the kitchen. She was dressed in a white blouse, and a short denim skirt. The outfit showed her womanly figure. Her hand was rested on the back of her neck, and her head moved to the side resting on her hand.

And then the familiar ringing of the doorbell caused time to skid to a halt.

He was here.

The multiple echo of footsteps came skidding out of the kitchen. Alyssa was dressed in a pair of smart trousers and a pair of oven gloves covered her hands and a cooking apron tied tightly, showing off the almost 7 month baby bump. "He's early" Her face was alarmed and Gabriella just learned where she got her nervousness from.

"Gabi answer the door." Cheryl instructed. The three elder Montez sisters were standing with their heads popping out from each of the other ones shoulder. Gabriella suddenly felt her nerves kick in again. She stood up and as she walked straightened down to the front door she straightened her clothes, making sure she looked presentable for him. She sighed deeply before placing her hand on the door.

And there he stood.

His god like figure was standing lazily, his arm reaching up holding the doorframe. His whole body leaned towards it for support. And he was staring down at her with all the love in the world. Although she didn't see it. His eyes were sparkling as he looked down at her.

"Hey you." He whispered. It was as if she had forgotten the sensations that he gave her, just his voice and the butterflies kicked in. She didn't know whether that was the nerves or the intoxicating sound of his voice.

"Hi" She whispered back. She pulled the door and let it swing open so he could walk in. Troy happily obliged and walked into the house. He faced her sideways and wrapped his arms around the small of her back, pulling her close to him. Gabriella wrapped her own around the back of his sturdy neck.

She pulled away from him momentarily and he connected his lips with hers. It wasn't hungry, or passionate. It was just sensual. A friendly hello kiss. "You alright?" He whispered as he pulled away from her. She turned her body and saw her three elder sisters looking over at her with smiles on their faces. Gabriella flushed crimson and bit down onto her lip.

"It's gonna be a long night"

An hour later Gabriella and the rest of the family were sitting in the family room. Talking, drinking coffee. Gabriella and Troy were sat on the couch close to one another, although his arm wasn't securely around her it rested around back of the couch and hung gracefully away from her body. Dinner had gone reasonably well, her family hadn't been too embarrassing. And they hadn't interrogated Troy. Well not yet.

"So Troy you wanna hear stories from when Gabi was a kid?" Alyssa asked with a playful smirk evident on her face. Oh no. Talk about Embarrassing. This couldn't happen.

Gabriella's eyes jumped from their sockets. "NO he doesn't." She practically screamed.

"I think I do" Troy smirked and Gabriella hung her head as if in shame. She didn't want this. Embarrassing childhood stories. Great now all they had to do was bring out the fucking photo album.

"Okay so when Gabi was around 4 I think? I was babysitting her" Alyssa began and Gabriella could feel herself becoming a beetroot colour. This really wasn't happening. "And you have to remember I was around what 13? So I didn't want an annoying 4 year old around me all of the time"

So she was an annoying 4 year old? "I'm sitting right here" She proclaimed.

Alyssa started to laugh hard at her. "Shush! Right okay so I said to her Gabi go outside it's a nice day go play get yourself some fresh air. So out she goes, and 2 minutes later she comes plodding back in with her fist clenched like this" She demonstrated, holding her arm out and her fist clenched. "So I'm thinking oh god, she's got a worm a spider she's got dirt in her hands. So I said to her, Gabi what have you got there? And she opened her hand and said to me Lissy here you go I got you some fresh air"

Immediately laughter burst out into the room and Gabriella placed her now tomato face in her hands and shook her head rapidly. "I was four come on"

Troy turned his head casually so it looked like he was looking out of the window and whispered in her ear. "A very cute four year old."

"You wanna get the photo album out?" Cheryl teased and Gabriella's eyes jumped out of their sockets. NO! That could not happen. She would rather die, than let that happen.

"NO! You really don't wanna do that" Gabriella demanded forcefully.

"This is nice y'know" Dan informed. Gabriella would have thought Dan would have been interrogating Troy to no end. But he wasn't. Obviously because Gabriella's father wasn't around Dan had stepped in to be a father role to her. But he had been nothing but welcoming and nice to Troy.

"What is?" Troy's sexy voice asked. Even though he wasn't putting on a sexy voice. He still sounded sexy. Everything about him was sexy.

"Gabriella's never had any boys over before" Gabriella lowered her head and felt herself flood crimson again. God when was that gonna stop?

"Why not?" Troy asked his thick eyebrows were frowned in confusion.

"She must be serious about you Troy." Alyssa teased with a smile on her face. This wasn't happening. Scaring him off. Yes they were definitely doing that now.

"Oh my god" Gabriella murmured with her head placed in her hands. He was going to walk out now, he was going to leave, and never return. EVER AGAIN! But Troy's arm lazily draped down to her waist and squeezed her hip comfortingly.

"Well I'm serious about her too" A chorus of awe's were heard throughout the room from the female's of the household, and Gabriella looked up at him with a tight smile on her face, and mouthed really, to him. He nodded in return.

She thought she had just fallen in love with him all over again. She was in love with him. He had just confirmed it.

"Right. I guess I should go. I've got a curfew that is firmly in place" Troy stood up from his seat on the couch. "Thanks for the invite the food was amazing"

Gabriella stood up and stood short compared to Troy. Well that's what you got when you were only 5 ft 1 or 2? She wasn't quite sure.

"Oh Troy it's been our pleasure" Alyssa cooed at her boyfriend.

"I'll walk you to the door" Gabriella said quietly as she unknowingly gnawed on her bottom lip.

"It's been a pleasure meeting you all" Troy smiled and extended his arm to shake Dan's hand, maybe he was trying to make more of a good impression on him because he knew that Gabriella's father wasn't in the picture? Well she hadn't confirmed it but still.

"The pleasures all ours man" Dan replied and shook Troy's hand firmly.

Choruses of 'bye Troy' and 'hope to see you soon' broke out while Gabriella and Troy walked to the door, as soon as they were out of sight to the rest of them he connected his hand with hers. Gabriella opened the door and suddenly felt Troy gently push her back so her back was connecting with the wall and his lips pushed their way to hers. Now this was a hungry kiss it was a teasing kiss. Tingles shot up and down her body, every single time their skin collided, never mind their lips touching together. He pulled away and Gabriella was left gasping for air.

"God, I've wanted to do that since I walked through the door" Troy commented breathlessly.

Gabriella laughed slightly. "Me too"

The sensitive side of Troy came out again and he gingerly reached up to her hair and brushed a curl from her face. "You look beautiful tonight"

Gabriella smiled blissfully and closed her eyes as his large fingers stroked the side of her face. "You're not so bad yourself wildcat"

A swell of happiness washed through her blood stream. For the first time in a long time she felt happy. Gabriella pecked her lips to his inviting ones again. "Goodnight"

She was without a doubt 100 per cent completely, totally in love with him. And she was never coming up for air.


	17. Something Kinda Ooooh

**A/N: This was really hard to write actually because I knew how I wanted it but just couldn't put it into words. So I hope you like it! The last couple of chapters have been all Troyella fluff that is well deserved but the drama will be kicking in soon!**

**On more of a serious note I just want to say that my heart and thoughts go out to Jade Goody and her family now. For you people that don't know her, she sadly passed away on Mothers Day of a traumatic and big fight with cervical cancer. I just want to say that this chapter is in memory of Jade Goody (5th June 1981-22nd March 2009) And may she rest in piece. **

**And also I would like to say this chapter is also in memory of Natasha Richardson (1963-2009) who died in an unfortunate skiiing accident. My thoughts go out to all of her family and I too hope that she rests in piece. **

* * *

When they ask me what I liked best, I'll say it was you.

Maggie Rice - City of Angels

* * *

"Who's that?"

Troy's hypnotic voice questioned. Gabriella couldn't see what he was doing as she was in the corner of the room. She placed Lucas down in the crib and smiled down at him. "Now you be a good boy" She whispered and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. The elder Montez sisters and Dan had gone to Alyssa's club in the making to go and sort some things out. So Gabriella took the first opportunity she had to invite Troy over.

"Who's who?" Gabriella asked while she walked back into the living room to see Troy standing at the fireplace, the fire was crackling adjacent to his calves. The heat warming up her body and the light from the fire was the only source. There was a lamp in the far corner dimly lit.

"This woman." Gabriella walked over and it soon loomed on her what picture Troy was actually looking at. Gabriella slowly slid her body and moulded it to Troy's. Standing infront of him she looked at the picture intently. The picture was of a woman and a baby. The woman was tall, and extremely thin, but she had curves in the right places. The woman was sitting down, well on a couch and her legs were rested on the bottom end. Her hair was almost jet black and curled. Well not curled but the loose waves were loose down her face. She had deep brown chocolate eyes. HER deep brown chocolate eyes.

"That's my mom" She said simply and almost immediately felt Troy's hands wrap around her slim waist and his chin rested on her shoulder, peppering kisses to her bare skin.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know" He whispered. His strong hands guided their way the slightest way up her black spaghetti strapped cami and made soothing circles on the skin that separated his hands from her hip.

"It's okay. Don't worry about it" Her hands reflexively dropped and rested on top of his own hands. They laced automatically and Gabriella's body rested on Troy's for support. For strength. In the air around her she could feel a discomfort, from Troy's behalf, like he was thinking about something. "What is it?"

Troy sighed in defeat. And lowered his head to nuzzle in the crook of her neck. "What happened to her?"

She knew it was coming. And she wasn't going to hide it from him anymore. "She, um. She died. She had cancer; she died when I was 2"

She imagined Troy's eyes closing tightly as she said the words. "Fuck, I'm sorry."

Gabriella turned around in Troy's arms and saw his piercing blue eyes staring down into hers. "Don't worry about it." Gabriella whispered sensually and pressed her lips to his.

Troy's grip around Gabriella's back tightened as if she was about to fall. "Do you remember much about her?"

Gabriella looked at the twinkle in Troy's eye. The twinkle that she noticed was there permanently when she was around him. "Yeah, hardly anything though. I remember that she used to own this cafe. And she used to work late on a night and really really distantly I can remember that she'd come home and she'd always smell like a cafe"

Troy chuckled lightly and seemed to wrap his arms even tighter around her thin waist. "What about your dad?"

Well that was a different story! Complete and totally different story. It wasn't that Gabriella had anything against her father, well that would be a lie. But he must have had his reasons right? The truth was Gabriella just hated him. It wasn't just a slight dislike or a major dislike she actually hated him. She had grown up without a father and if she would have passed him on the street she wouldn't have even batted an eyelid. When she was a child she chose to cut off all forms of things that could remind her of her father. Including photos. So there were no photos in the house of him. She couldn't even remember what he looked like. "He um, he left" Gabriella could feel a collection of tears start to form at the back of her eye sockets.

"Baby I'm so sorry" He spoke firmly. But Gabriella couldn't help to feel her heart flutter. He had never called her 'baby' before.

"Meh, what's done is done." She attempted to lighten the situation, but she couldn't help but feel saddened by her father's actions.

When she was a child Gabriella had always thought that there was something wrong with her. She had spent so many nights crying herself to sleep, thinking there was something wrong with her, that she pushed him away. She had never stopped searching for the answers to why he left. It still puzzled her now. But where was it going to get her? Nowhere that's where.

"What about him? Do you remember much about him?"He pressed a kiss to her neck. Focus Gabriella focus. Her mind was focussed on the sensations he was giving her just by a kiss.

"Um, I remember the day he left" She grabbed his hand that was resting on her hip and guided him to the couch. She let herself fall and her small frame almost bounce from the couch and back onto it. There was a shift in weight and then Troy's built body fell down and his arm draped over her holding her close, as if he was supplying her with the strength to tell him.

"Wanna tell me about it?" He whispered gingerly and pressed his lips to the side of her face. And his silent message was sent, that he was there for her.

"I... uh. I was only what 3? But they say that certain days can scar you forever right?" She attempted to laugh but the grapefruit was starting to swell in the back of her throat. "After mom died my grams stepped in y'know to take care of us because we were after all screaming girls. So my grams said something and my dad said something else. So they were arguing. They really didn't get along. He walked out of the front door and never came back."

Troy's eyes closed almost in pain that she had told him. His bulging biceps pulled her onto his lap so her back was leant up against the end of the side of the couch and her legs were draped over him, his sapphire spheres were penetrating into her brown ones.

"And even though my sisters were like he's gone he's gone, for a full year later I would think to myself he's gonna come back. He's got to come back. You know why?" Gabriella questioned and placed her small hand onto the tan glowing skin that was peaking through from the bottom of his t shirt. Troy's chunky eyebrows rose to signal her to tell him. "Because he didn't take any clothes"

Gabriella laughed shyly and hid her head in the crook of his neck to shield her embarrassment. Gabriella felt Troy's head nuzzle into hers and his stomach vibrated on her body. She threaded her hand through the chestnut strands of hair. He closed his eyes from the stimulation.

"You know what?" He whispered carefully and his oversized hand covered the skin on her knee and started to rub circles soothingly.

"What?" She whispered back and pressed her lips gently to his temple.

"I could see me loving you." Although she had just spilled her heart out to him, to hear that news it caused a huge beam to crack the moulds of her face. Her cheek bones raised, it was like she had never smiled before.

"Really?" She questioned although she knew he was telling her the truth. "You mean that?"

Troy nodded solemnly with a tight smirk on his face.

"Well y'know what?" She murmured close to his ender ear lobe.

"What?" He reached up his large strong hand and brushed away the stray curls that were lingering on her face.

"I'm falling for you, it's like a skydiving?" The words left her mouth and she felt his strong, defined muscles contracted around her.

"Oh yeah? How so?" He questioned with a smug smile tattooed on his flawless face.

"Because before you jump out of the plane it's so frightening. But then all of the way down, even as frightening as it is you're still scared but you get this thrill from it. And then you hit the ground" Gabriella explained. She had gone sky diving once before in her life. It was the most frightful day of her life. And she could compare it to falling in love.

"And what happens when you hit the ground?" His husky voice questioned.

"I was hoping you'd tell me." The air suddenly for thousands of degrees hotter as the hormones mixed in with the heat of the fire that was radiating heat towards the two lovebirds.

Troy's breath was inside of her mouth before she knew it, and not long after that his tongue forced its way in between her closed lips. Both of their tongues danced with each other like they were waltzing. Gabriella felt her heart soaring through the air. It was beating at dangerous speeds. So fast that she thought it was going to explode.

Gabriella's hands roamed to the bottom of his shirt and slowly pulled it over his head. Only pulling away from his pieces of heaven momentarily so she could pull the shirt over his head. He pulled her body to him and he laid his body back on the couch so she was lying directly on top of him. She could have sworn she could feel the lines of his defining six pack against her flat stomach. His gentle hands reached down to her own cami and pulled it from her head.

"Fuck." Troy muttered breathlessly. His stunning sapphire eyes wondered down her body. He flipped the two of them over so she was now lying underneath him. There was no kissing for a matter of seconds and Gabriella found herself whimpering at the lack of stimulation. But it was short lived as his lips attached themselves to her flat stomach pressing kisses all the way down.

Gabriella's back arched and a moan let itself go from Gabriella's lips. "You're beautiful" He whispered into her skin. His cool breath sent shivers down her spine. She couldn't comprehend the feelings that were shooting around her body. More so in her heart. Her heart was thumping so hard that she could feel it slamming against her chest. The pulse in her core, was like a second heartbeat and it was racing. As fast as a gold medallist running the 500 metres. He moved his attention back to her lips forcing his tongue back through the threshold that kept their two bodies apart.

Troy's hand that wasn't his weight up, making sure he wasn't squashing her crept its way up to Gabriella's flat stomach, and started to rub small circles. Gabriella could feel Troy's excitement growing, it was evident through the poke that she could feel in her thigh. He unexpectedly flipped the two of them again so now she was lying on top of him, their lips still attached. Gabriella's small hands reached down to his chocolate brown leather belt and started to undo it. She didn't know what the hell was going to happen but she still found it enticing. She was so curious to see all of the famous _Troy Bolton. _

He didn't waste any time in reaching down and grabbed her hands to help her undo the button and underneath her body she could feel him trying to kick them off. She dethatched their lips and shimmied down to the denim jeans he was wearing and pulled them off, leaving them forgotten on the floor. "Fucking jeans!" Troy almost hissed before his lips found their way back onto hers.

Gabriella was thankful that it was dark and the curtains were closed otherwise people would have been able to see in. And she was also thankful that Lucas was out of the room and hopefully sound asleep, otherwise her and Troy may have scarred the poor child for life. Gabriella felt a cold wash of air as Troy's hand momentarily left her flat stomach and pulled the skirt down that she was wearing. Gabriella had never been more thankful for the choice of clothing she was wearing in her life. Troy was just wearing a pair of clean white boxers with a black hem and Gabriella wasn't even wearing matching underwear. How disappointing. There was a neon pink bra and black panties.

Gabriella flipped their clammy bodies again and now he was straddling her, her body was writhing beneath him. Troy then took the opportunity and his lips disjoined their lips and started down from the bottom of her left shaved leg and started to pepper kisses up her calf and carried on all the way until he got to her lips. Her back was arched and she could feel herself becoming even wetter by each kiss. Her juices were running from her hole. "Troy..." She moaned. Her head rolled back onto the cushion behind her.

Troy's expert fingers started to work on the black panties she was wearing. Troy's hands gently grazed her folds. Gabriella had never felt sensations like this. "Oh god... fuck." Gabriella never usually used language of that kind but the feelings he was invoking on her, she couldn't bite her tongue. The juice was now spilling from her whole like water from a tap. Troy was soundlessly nipping at her neck and she knew there was probably going to be a hickey there tomorrow but she didn't care.

She was craving him. Some kind of stimulation. Some kind of touch from him. His hand was teasing her, grazing over each fold. She had never felt anything this good but she needed him to do something though otherwise she was pretty sure she was going to die. She could feel her skin sticking to the couch in the forms of sweat. But that wasn't what was bothering her. What was bothering her was that Troy wasn't doing anything. "Troy" She moaned. "Stop teasing"

He chuckled throatily over her, and joined his lips to hers. His index finger then circled her swollen clitoris. Gabriella's breath was hitched in her throat and she moaned loudly. "Okay then."

She wasn't expecting it but troy's fingers plunged into her spongy walls. Her head rolled back and her mouth opened in a state of pleasure. Her body was in ecstasy as his fingers stayed still. She bucked her hips to try and get them to move but it wasn't happening. His fingers soon caught motion and his lips attached to hers, her grunts and moans were silenced by his lips. "Oh... god Troy"

Troy added a second finger and curved his fingers further into her. Her hips bucked upwards. "Holy shit." His lips violently shoved themselves among the mounds of Gabriella's breasts, but all she was bothering about right now was the euphoria building inside of her. She was gasping and she was pretty sure she was going to die from lack of oxygen. It was building inside of her like it was a volcano ready to erupt.

And it did.

Her spherical head and not soaking wet tendrils threw back onto the cushion. Her whole lower body threw itself up in euphoria. Her eyes closed in bliss. Her body suddenly felt like it was vibrating, like she was sneezing. Her ribs were heaving up and down rapidly. So fast she thought that they were going to crack and her lungs were going to combust from lack of air. "Oh... oh my"

Even with her eyes still closed she could imagine Troy's smirk above her. He kissed the cushion of her black hair. He soundlessly pulled his fingers out of her and with his other hand he grabbed her hand. He laced their fingers perfectly together like it was a jigsaw. Gabriella moved her body so she was rested on him. Her panting had calmed down but she was still finding it hard to catch her breath.

"God. I..." She couldn't find the words to say. The only emotion that was swelling over her like an allergic reaction was love. But only it wasn't a bad feeling like an allergic reaction was.

Troy laughed slightly and kissed her temple. "It's okay. You don't have to say anything. I'm just gonna go to the bathroom okay. You should get dressed."

Gabriella knew the silent meaning of this. He was going to the bathroom to solve his 'problem' and if he came back there and saw her lying in just her bra it wouldn't be solved. Gabriella nodded her heavy head knowingly. "Okay."

Troy went to the bathroom and Gabriella took the opportunity to get dressed and by the time Troy was back she was lying on the couch with her eyelids fluttering open and closed every few seconds.

"Wear you out did I?" Troy was standing sexily infront of her with a tight smirk on his face. And no tent evident in his jeans.

Gabriella smiled lazily and shifted her weight so he could sit down. Her body fell back onto his and she threw her full weight onto him. "You should be happy."

His chest vibrated underneath hers and his lips cushioned onto her head. "Fuck, if you could have seen yourself. I thought I was going to have to stop half way through."

Gabriella's eyebrows narrowed in confusion. "Why?"

Troy laughed again. "Because you turned me on so fucking much."

Gabriella would have laughed but it would have taken up too much energy. She lifted up her dainty arm and rested it on his pectoral. He manoeuvred his own hand and held her hand in place. She could feel slight vibrations beneath her hand in the form of his heartbeat. Every so often he would press his thin lips to the cushion of her midnight hair.

"I don't want you to go" She whispered groggily, she was trying to fight the sleep that was washing over her.

"Sssh, I'm still here. Just sleep okay?" His hypnotic voice and his gentle caressing was enough to make her drift off into a slumber.


	18. Be Gentle With Me

**A/N: This chapter was really hard to write but I kind of like it, I hope you guys like it anyways! It was kind of hard to write but I hope you can tell and I hope my hard work pays off! Thanks for the kind reviews :) They really make my day. You know what to do :)**

* * *

It's Not Fair And I Think You're Really Mean

Lilly Allen - Not Fair

* * *

"Morning there beautiful"

Gabriella turned to see Troy's face smirking down upon her. The azure spheres radiating more love than you could ever imagine. His soft lips pushed against the skin on her cheek. She beamed happily and turned her full body around so she could take as much of him in as possible.

"Hey handsome" She smirked and pressed her lips to his, in a good morning kiss. He wrapped his arms around the small of her back and she reached up to slither her arms around the back of his neck and started to play with the stray hairs. He had a twinkle in his eye. A twinkle that wasn't usually there, it was different.

"Hey randy. Uh uh, I mean Troy" Chad walked towards them and slapped his hand to Troy's bulging bicep.

"Dude, totally not busy here." Troy referenced to the nothings that were happening between the two of them. Well they weren't doing anything were they? Just staring. Just longing. Wanting. God could he be any more desirable?

"Good because Gabriella I need to talk to you" Gabriella raised her eyebrows in shock. Chad wanted to talk to her? Yeah they had had conversations before but just casual ones not where he had set off to talk to her. If you know what she meant?

"Shoot what about?" Gabriella asked without unravelling her arms from Troy's neck. He started to sway their bodies ever so slightly. Not so everyone else could see it. It was like they were dancing. And every so often Troy would press a chaste kiss to her temple or her forehead.

"Well it's a message from Zeke actually. He was wondering if you knew what was wrong with Sharpay." Gabriella tried her best not to cough and splutter on the spit that was in her mouth at that second. Why couldn't she? Oh yeah because there was none there it had dried up like the grand canyon in a space of seconds.

"Um, why has he said something?" She asked quickly and in a higher pitch of voice than she usually used. Troy somehow sensed her distress and rubbed the pads of his thumbs along the skin that was covering her back.

"Well he didn't ask me to directly ask you" _Phew. _"But he was just like Sharpay's been really weird lately and then he said to me ask Taylor if she knows anything and I did but Taylor acted really really weird and then I thought I'd ask you because you guys are tight now right?" Gabriella was probably imagining things when she thought Chad knew something. Because he couldn't possibly could he? There was only Gabriella Sharpay Taylor and Kelsi that knew. Nobody else.

Or so she thought.

"Um, yeah we are" She answered solemnly. Immediately feeling guilty for lying. She was a bad person, she was going to hell.

"So do you know anything?" Chad asked as if it was obvious.

"I'm sorry I..." She began to start. Her mind drifted back to when Sharpay had had the abortion, her face was contorted with so much emotional pain, she was sure that a knife piercing through your skin wouldn't have hurt as much.

"Taylor was acting the way you are now. Do you know something?" His voice wasn't irritated; it was just like he was piecing pieces of the puzzle together.

Gabriella bit her lip out of nerves. Her eyes closed as if in pain. She had to lie. She couldn't tell them. It would be the end of her if she was to tell them. "I don't know anything."

Troy was looking down at her as if he was reading her mind. This was a conversation she really didn't want to have. She didn't want to be there. She just wanted the ground to swallow her whole right there and then. It would have been so much easier than it was to meet her boyfriend and his best friends gaze. If they found out she knew something and she never told them then she would be for it. Not only would Troy dump her but Sharpay would scream at her and tell her that she was a fucking idiot for trusting her.

Oh no. Her breathing was coming in spasms. She was panicking. She couldn't breathe. Her lungs were starting to cut themselves off from oxygen. "Hey. You're okay right?"

Troy brought her head up to look him in the eye. Little did she know she was now an earth shattering pale. "Um, yeah. I'm fine"

She nuzzled her head into his chest and he brought his hand up to place it in the back of her midnight black hair. As if he was trying to soothe her with his heartbeat. The next few minutes seemed like a daze to her. Like she was stood still and watching everybody walked past her so rapidly. She could hear distantly the conversation of Chad and Troy, not that she could hear what they were saying. But still. She shook her head to bring her out from her daydream.

"I don't really wanna leave her. She was like this the night when y'know" Maybe Troy didn't think she was listening? But her heart was secretly soaring not slamming against her chest from lack of oxygen. Troy didn't want to leave her; he wanted to stay with her because he was worried. How sweet could he get? But when he said _the night when y'know, _her mind cast back to the night where she had a panic attack and Troy calmed her, kind of the way he was now.

"Gabs. You alright?" Chad questioned. He peered down to look in her face, which had alot more colour and a flush of pink in her cheeks again.

"Yeah. I'm okay now" She answered and Troy pressed an electric kiss to her hair.

He lifted his hands from the bottom of her back and rested them on her forearms forcing her to look up into the azure eyes. Her most favourite colour in the world."You're sure you're okay?"

She loved how caring he was. How much he worried about her. "Yes. Troy I'm okay. So you were going somewhere?" She stepped away from his grasp, to stare at him more clearly.

Troy opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by a loud shouting among the corridor. "YOU KNEW? YOU FUCKING KNEW?"

Gabriella's eyes were wide as she saw the tall chocolate boy walking towards her. Well he wasn't walking. He was more like running, so fast she thought he was going to hit her. "Zeke dude..." Chad began, but his face was contorted with confusion. As much as Troy's was.

"YOU FUCKING LET HER GO THROUGH WITH THAT AND YOU DIDN'T THINK TO TELL ANYONE?" His bellow was so loud Gabriella's eyes were wide with fright. He was now nearing towards them even more. Troy stepped infront of her as if to protect her.

"Zeke what the fuck man?" Troy asked with his arm held out to the side.

"Stay the fuck out of this Bolton. Why don't you ask you're precious girlfriend what the fuck she's done?" Oh no. He knew. Deep down before he got towards them she knew that he knew. Her white teeth were sunken down into her bottom lip. Yeah as if that was going to get her out of this.

"Zeke..." Chad attempted to but in but Zeke held his hand out telling him to shut up.

The crimson ring that was around the iris of his eyes proved that he had seen red. Gabriella was sure if he knew he would have gone beyond red and would be out for blood. Gabriella's blood.

"Zeke that's enough" Troy ordered with his arm still around Gabriella silently protecting her.

"No Bolton. You know what she did. Do you know what she fucking did? She let Sharpay have an abortion." Fuck. It was out. There was nothing she could do about it. Her eyes closed painfully and she saw both Troy and Chad turn around to stare at her.

Silent tears were trickling down her face. She couldn't do this she had to get out.

"What the fuck possessed you did you not think to tell somebody? To tell me hello father here? She didn't even tell me herself" This was so bad. She didn't know what the hell to do. "I had to fucking find out from Tara fucking O'Connor. Do you know how that makes me feel huh? You selfish little..."

Before Zeke had a chance to say anything else Troy put his hand onto Zeke's stomach. "Zeke don't finish that sentence" Troy's voice was passionate. But Gabriella silently knew that he was going to break up with her. Things had been going so well. She was so much in love with him and now he was just going to break her heart just because she didn't tell somebody. Anybody. How fucking stupid was she?!

"Gabriella" Troy turned around and saw her broken face. She hadn't opened her eyes. She was praying that it would all go away. That she would wake up in her bed and be able to change it. Be able to go back and do something. "Baby?" He muttered quietly so the only person that could hear him was her.

"Zeke I'm sorry" She choked out, opening her eyes Troy's were closed painfully.

"I can't fucking believe this. Why? Why? Why the fuck didn't you tell somebody. She went and she murdered my baby. And you" He pointed at her. Troy had moved away from her as if he was processing the information and Zeke had stepped dangerously towards her. "You fucking helped her. You murdered my baby"

"Zeke that's enough" Chad butted in, grabbing onto Zeke's shoulder before he had a chance to hit Gabriella. After all that's what she deserved.

But instead of feeling hurt. She wasn't. It hadn't kicked in yet. She felt annoyance, and anger surging through her veins. A sudden need to bite her tongue would have helped her at that minute in time. But she couldn't control it. "You know what Zeke? She came to me. She came to me and asked me for my help. I couldn't fucking turn her away! SHE ASKED ME TO GO WITH HER AND YOU KNOW WHAT I SAID YES! WOULD YOU RATHER HER HAVE GONE ALONE? SHE WAS SCARED. SHE WAS SCARED THAT IF SHE TOLD YOU SHE WOULD FUCKING LOOSE YOU. SO DON'T YOU DARE POINT THE FINGER AT ME"

after Gabriella's sudden outburst. Troy had opened his eyes and there was concern pouring through his azure gaze. Chad and Zeke were both staring at her in shock. But she wasn't paying attention to that. She had to find Sharpay.

"Gabi..." Troy started, but as soon as he said her name a sob erupted from her throat. Tears of anger were falling from her eyes. She held up her hand to her mouth to shield her cries and she turned on her heels and started to run. As far away as she could. "GABI"

She could hear Troy in the distance but she couldn't turn back now.

She had to find Sharpay.

* * *

It was the worst day of her life.

By far.

She had never experienced so many looks. So many looks of disgust. So many looks of hatred.

It was the worst day of Sharpay Evans' life.

How could she have been so stupid? How could she have let herself fallen pregnant? And worst of all how could she have let herself abort the baby? How could she be so selfish? As soon as she walked into school that morning she felt all eyes on her. At first she thought she had just gotten a period or was walking with toilet paper stuck to her flat ballerina pumps. But then she was confronted. Confronted by her brother. Her own fucking brother. He had asked her if it was true. She had tried to deny it but as soon as she heard the hisses and the points saying "Yeah she was pregnant" or "She was having Zeke's baby" and the worst one was, "She had an abortion." She knew she couldn't hide it anymore.

She hadn't gone to her first lesson of the day. She had run. Run away from the rest of the world. And she never wanted to return. She had locked herself in the girls bathroom and had sat silently sobbing, with her arms wrapped around her legs. Silently cradling herself. Even when she found out that she was pregnant she had never suffered tears like this. She was crying so hard her breathing was coming in spasms.

People had even been into the bathroom and said things about her. Like: "Have you heard about Sharpay? What a slut" She couldn't face anyone. She couldn't face people knowing. She couldn't face Zeke. She loved him so much and he was going to end things with her. She knew it. She never wanted to lose him. And her reason for not telling Zeke about the pregnancy? Because she was bound to lose him.

"Shar?" She knew that voice. She knew it belonged to Gabriella.

She could hear her breathing coming in spasms. Like she had been running.

"Sharpay come on. Are you in here?" Her voice sounded upset. It sounded distraught for that matter.

"Gabi?" Sharpay squeaked and another sob let itself free.

"Fuck. Shar come out" Gabriella exclaimed breathlessly. "It's just me. Nobody else"

At least she had already had the looks of sorrow from Gabriella. She stood from her seat on the white porcelain seat and opened the door not even bothering to straighten herself down.

* * *

And then Gabriella saw her broken frame.

Even when she had gone with her to abort the baby. She hadn't seen her that broken. Her face was as wet as a river. Her chest looked sticky from the tears that had collected on her heaving chest. Her eyes were half closed and the tears were streaming. Like she had been crying for the 17 years that she had been living. But saying that if Gabriella had just found out that the full school knew her deepest darkest secret she was sure she would have cried the same amount.

Gabriella lunged towards Sharpay and held her in a bone crushing hug. Like she was trying to give her strength. But Gabriella didn't have any did she? She had not only just been humiliated infront of the full school or who was standing in the corridor, well no doubt they would tell so the whole school would know sooner or later. She had lost her temper infront of her boyfriend and his friends. Never had she lost her temper like that. She could feel herself shaking like a leaf with rage.

"It's okay" She attempted to sooth Sharpay's crying but another sob just came from her throat.

"No Gabi it's not okay. Everybody thinks I'm a slut and they think that I'm selfish and Zeke totally hates me" Gabriella felt her nose scrunch in disgust at the sound of his name. Yeah he had a right to be angry but by the sounds of things he hadn't even spoke to Sharpay and just come for her? Who the fuck did that? "What?"

Gabriella shook her head rapidly. "It's nothing"

Sharpay looked at her intently while sniffling. "What is it?"

She sighed in defeat. "Zeke came up to me in the corridor and confronted me about it. Said I was selfish and that I helped you and that I murdered his baby"

Sharpay's mouth hung open stupidly. "He said that? Did he mention who told him?"

Gabriella bit her lip down stupidly. She didn't know why she did that anymore because people knew why she did it.

"Gabriella." Sharpay's voice was almost back to normal now but her chest was still heaving to try and catch her breath.

"H...he s...said it was Tara" Gabriella stuttered. She watched as Sharpay's drained in colour and was now the shade of freshly fallen snow. A fresh round of tears welled in her eyes and she turned on her heels and turned back into the toilet and the sobs erupted again.

It was going to be a long day.

Gabriella felt a fresh dose of rage fire through her blood stream. She was out for blood.

Tara O'Connor's blood.

"Sharpay its okay. I'm gonna fix this!" The determination in her voice was overpowering and she marched out into the corridor.

Gazes were fixed on her tearstained face. But she didn't care. She had never said a word to Tara but Tara was going to get a piece of her mind. She knew that for certain. She walked around for around 10 minutes until her eyes narrowed in a tunnel kind of vision on the girl. She was stood with her back against the lockers talking to some guy. Probably saying she would let him into her knickers. The fucking slut.

Gabriella zoomed towards her and grabbed her shoulder causing her back to slam into the lockers. "Do you have no heart? Do you have no fucking soul?"

Tara looked a little taken back by Gabriella's outburst. But she soon regained composure and stood staring at Gabriella with a tight smirk on her face.

The rage, it was all building up, the anger, the pain that she had hurt so many people by just telling one person about something that he should have never found out about. "I'm sorry do I know you?"

Gabriella's eyes bulged. She couldn't do this. She had never wanted to slap someone in all of her life. "I think you know pretty well who I am. Do you have any idea of what you've fucking done."

Gabriella was totally unaware that the guy who was stood talking to Tara was on the basketball team and he had walked away. Tara shrugged her slim shoulders. "Zeke deserved to know. I did the right thing"

Gabriella didn't want to know how she found out, nor did she care. "How the fuck did you do the right thing? Do you know the damage that you've done? You couldn't have done more of a wrong thing but then again I think you know that don't you? You're so selfish! How could you think you were doing the right thing?" She was rambling she knew that but she couldn't control it. "Do you think that telling Zeke will get you to Chad? What the fuck would that achieve?" She was going to continue. The tears were streaming down her face from rage. From anger. She couldn't help it. She felt a small tap on her shoulder and the sparks that emerged from that one touch.

She knew who it was straight away.

She turned to see his face staring down at her with worry and concern. "Gabi come on"

Gabriella didn't notice the smirk on Tara's face. "Yeah listen to your boyfriend. Run along"

Her eyes grew in size. Her nostrils flared. Her lip was been gnawed at by her teeth. "Don't you fucking dare think this is the end of this, because I'm nowhere near finished."

Troy grabbed onto her hand and pulled her away silently. His hand laced with hers and it was at that moment she realised. He was going to break up with her. He didn't say a word for at least 5 minutes until she found herself on the roof of the school. The tears silently were still streaming. She couldn't control them.

"Say it" She whispered and he pulled her around and brought his thumbs to Gabriella's cheek bones to wipe away the lingering tears.

"Say what?" He said gently and pulled her into his embrace.

"You're gonna break up with me" She sobbed. She couldn't do anything else, Troy had pulled her closer if it was even possible kissed her hair.

"Hey. What makes you think that?" He cooed in a whisper, only loud enough for her to hear.

"Because I never told you" She said simply.

He grabbed her dainty hand and led her towards the bench. Her heaving chest was beginning to slow down, what was it going to achieve? She could cry a hell of a lot more when he told her that it was over. "Hey look at me"

Gabriella sat down and looked up into the warmth of his eyes. They were enough to make her stop crying instantaneously. "I admire you so much for not telling anyone. Zeke was a complete dick"

He gingerly swept his fingers through a lone curl that was lingering on her face. "I totally lost it. I should apologize; he had a right to be angry."

Troy leant in and gently pressed his cool lips against her tearstained ones. He pulled away and rubbed his thumbs over her water stain marks that were drying on her face. "Yeah he did but he had no fucking right to say shit to you. Don't even think about apologizing"

Gabriella felt Troy tense as he was talking about it. His body was totally stiff. It suddenly dawned on her. He wasn't going to finish things with her, was he? Well if he was, he had a fucked up way of showing it. Instead of trailing his thumbs off of her red swollen face he pressed his lips to the stains that had covered her face. The clearer marks where her makeup had been worn away. Her breathing was calming down as the tears stopped falling. He wasn't going to break up with her. Was he? "Yeah well it's over now. It's not over between us though is it?"

Troy shook his head so quick she thought it was going to fall from his shoulders. "Never. I told Zeke he was out of order"

That was the last thing she wanted. Troy to be falling around with his best friends because of her. She wouldn't allow that to happen. "Troy I... I don't want you arguing with your friends because of me"

He connected their lips together sensually; his two pieces of flesh squeezed her bottom lip before pulling away reluctantly. "So you think that I could let him say shit like that to you? No way. He was out of order, he'll see it. I promise"

She ran her hands up and pushed the side fringe from her eye that was clouding her view from him. "He was so pissed. I thought he was going to hit me." She stated truthfully.

Troy tensed suddenly and looked down at her, his head shaking rapidly. "Hey. He would never ever lay a finger on you. And if he did? It would be the last thing that he did"

This brought a relief to her. She had thought back to when Zeke was screaming at her. Even though she felt rage because she had sworn to herself that she would never let any guy hit her again. She had actually felt scared; another side of Gabriella, the minority side at that moment in time was shaking inside her body. Telling her to run, to get away. To let him scream and shout and let him hit her. She was relieved that Troy would protect her. Like he always said he would be.

"So how's Sharpay?" He asked. He winced a little as he spoke, as if he was dreading the response.

"She was sitting in the bathroom, crying her eyes out. I've never felt so bad for anyone" She said biting down on her lip. Gabriella let her body flop onto Troy's and heaved her legs up onto the bench. "Thank you for what you did for me today..."

Troy kissed her neck, she squirmed a little. Not wanting another hickey that she had discovered a couple of days ago. It was finally fading, and the abuse that she had received from her sisters for having a hickey. God she never wanted to experience it again.

"I told you I'm always there to protect you."


	19. Whatcha Think About That?

_"Why do you want to do this?"  
"Because I love her, okay? I love her."_

Jack + David Just like Heaven

* * *

The cold air of the high school gym whipped over her. It felt like it her clenched knuckles were being sliced with a knife. She hugged the jacket she was wearing closer to her body. There were still lingering people stood on the hardwood flooring, standing in huddles, probably trying to share their body heat. To say 15 minutes previously the gym was filled with warm air that was condensing from the sweaty basketball players, it had changed drastically. It had been 3 days since the school had found out about Sharpay's pregnancy, and they still weren't dropping it. Even though she had called Gabriella crying a few times she still held it together and came to school. Nobody really knew whether it was true or not, so really it was just like a rumour. No-one had made a public speech and said that it was true or anything.

"Gabriella can we talk?" Gabriella turned to the source of the masculine voice. The tall built basketball player was walking towards her with a red gym bag hanging loosely from his right shoulder. His head was hung downwards as he spoke to her, as if in shame.

Zeke hadn't made any effort to talk to her in the 3 days that had passed. He had solemnly just passed her in the corridor, not looking at her or anything. It had meant Troy and Gabriella hadn't spent alot of time together during school time, since Sharpay and Zeke were still rocky on the grounds and weren't really on talking terms so Gabriella had been with Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi constantly and Troy had been with the guys. Which she didn't mind at all. It just made her miss him that was all.

"Um, I guess so" She answered awkwardly. She was currently sitting on the bleachers waiting for Troy after the basketball game, which he had played incredible in! Even though it had got her a little bit horny watching him run around all sweat drenched it made her long for him to be above her chanting her name with the same amount of sweat trickling from his golden skin. Ever since Troy had discovered her body in a new way she found herself longing for things with him more. She had done things with Luke, they hadn't gone the full way but with Troy it was different, it was more intense. Probably because she was head over heels in love with him.

All she had to do was tell him.

"I guess I just wanted to say I'm sorry" Ugh he guessed? Yeah Gabriella knew that he had a right to be angry and that he had a right to shout at her but she still felt a dislike towards him. "I just. I was hurt and I took it out on you and I shouldn't have."

Gabriella nodded solemnly. She definitely knew that Troy had put him up to this, otherwise he would have said something what? 3 days ago, right? Her stupid boyfriend. "It's okay. You had a right to be angry. I shouldn't have said what I said. I was wrong."

By this time Zeke had climbed his way up and sat on the wooden row infront of Gabriella, he had turned around and was now looking her directly in her tired chocolate orbs. "No. If anything you were right." Zeke laughed awkwardly. "I thought about what you said and it's really given me a kick up the ass y'know?"

Gabriella smiled slightly. There must have been a window in that room because fuck she was cold. She hugged the jacket closed to her as if it was going to warm her but the only thing that was going to warm her was Troy Bolton's arms. The way they snaked around her and held her to him like he was going to lose her it was overpowering. "How do you feel about it now?"

She did actually feel remorse towards him, after all he had lost his child before he had even learnt he had one. Well potentially. "Truthfully? In a way I think it was the right thing to do, but it still hurt that she didn't tell me y'know"

Gabriella didn't know whether he was being genuinely truthful or he was just making a silent dig towards her. "Yeah. I know, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you but I couldn't. I'm so sorry"

She didn't know why she was being so apologetic towards him after all the other day? She had completely lost her temper. She had gone beyond seeing red, she had seen god only knows what colour. Something that she never wanted to do again. "Gabriella don't worry about it okay. In a way I'm thankful"

What? 3 days ago he was completely screwing. "Why?" Her slim black eyebrows narrowed in confusion.

He shrugged his built shoulders even though the sad smile was apparent on his long face. "Because you made sure she wasn't alone. And I couldn't thank you enough for that"

Gabriella smiled tightly. At least he had come to his senses right? "If it's worth anything, deep down I wanted her to tell you."

Zeke chuckled lightly. "Thanks for that. I still can't believe it though."

Gabriella slightly knew what he meant. But it was in a completely different context. When Luke had hit her, the first and only time, she had taken a long time to process the information. Like Zeke there had been stages of her grieving. She had started with rage, like he had evidently with her. Then she locked herself away and wouldn't really talk to anyone for a few days, like Zeke had refused to apologize to her, well he hadn't refused to apologize to her. Just refused to talk to her, truth be told she hadn't expected an apology, but then she had been completely and utterly hurt and in disbelief that he had intentionally hurt her like that. The only difference was Sharpay didn't intentionally hurt Zeke.

"Yeah I know. She's hurting too" Gabriella knew that Sharpay was hurting; underneath the act she was in total pain.

"I know, I've been trying to call her but she hasn't answered and she barely talks to me in school. Fuck it's so complicated." Zeke shook his head in disbelief. As if he didn't know how he had let things get that bad.

"I know. It'll work out. I promise. Things always do. People find each other, through all of the drama. Don't worry yourself" Gabriella encouraged lightly, her hand lying on Zeke's shoulder to comfort him.

"You're making me feel even guiltier for screaming at you now" Zeke smiled brightly at her.

"Don't worry about it. Where's that wildcat of mine anyways?"

* * *

Troy Bolton was a nervous wreck.

Not only had he just completed one of the most intense game of his life. He had a plan tonight. And that was to tell Gabriella how he felt. Only every second that it got closer to it he got even more terrified. He could see her all the way throughout the game with a look of longing on her face, but mixed in with pride. But at that minute in time? He couldn't wait to see her.

He was currently in the locker room, figuring out what he was going to say and how he was going to tell her that he was completely in love with her. So in love it made his heart ache. "I love you, I love you" He muttered to himself.

Troy Bolton never got nervous. Well the last time he got nervous was when.... when he spoke to Gabriella. Fuck that seemed like such a long time ago.

"Y'know talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity." A high pitched tone came from behind him. But he knew that voice anywhere. It was a voice that made his stomach turn, bile make its way up to his throat.

"What are you doing here?" He turned around to see Tara draped up against the lockers in the locker room. The cheerleading outfit was still clothing her but the skirt was probably half way up to her rib cage and the top? She was disgusting. Troy really despised her.

"Making sure you don't make a big mistake" She shrugged her hideous shoulders loosely Her short hair was pushed up as she leant on the crimson locker.

"What?" His chestnut eyebrows were scrunched in confusion. He didn't know what the hell the slut was talking about but all he wanted to do was get out there to Gabriella. Just to take her in his arms. God it was what he woke up for in the morning.

"Gabriella. She's not who she says she is" She said casually. Right, like he was going to believe that. What the fuck was she doing here anyways?

"Right okay" He said sarcastically and closed his locker infront of him. He was one step closer to getting to her. One step closer in telling her how he felt. He couldn't physically or emotionally wait anymore. He wanted her to know that he loved her.

"I'm serious. I did my homework" She walked towards Troy making him take a step back. Great now he was a step further away from her.

"Yeah like I said whatever. Look I have somewhere I need to be" He took a step forward expecting her to take a step back, but she didn't. Fucking whore! What the fuck did she think she was doing stepping between him and Gabriella, seriously!

"Has Gabriella told you about her past?" Troy rolled his eyes obnoxiously. He didn't need this, nor did he want it. His muscles were throbbing, aching from the intensity of what he had just played at. He closed his eyes. Tired of it.

"Look Tara. As much as I don't like talking to you. My girlfriend is waiting for me so if you'll excuse me." He started and brushed past her before she opened her stupid little mouth.

"She has another sister." She blurted out quickly and in a raised kind of voice.

Troy stopped in his steps and turned around to stare at her. Gabriella never mentioned that to him did she? Surely she would have mentioned something. They had been together more or less 2 months and she hadn't mentioned that. Surely it wouldn't be true. He didn't say anything. He just stared at her.

"That's why she moved. She had a sister and she died." Tara explained. With not one bit of remorse in her voice, that's probably why she was making it up. Right? "And the worst thing is that Gabriella didn't mention it to you did she?" She was getting cocky; the smirk was tight on her hideous features.

"Whatever." He tried to walk away but his feet wouldn't let him.

"Troy, she had an elder sister, and she died right infront of her eyes" She attempted to go on further. He couldn't take it. His fist rammed into the crimson lockers and immediately Tara jumped from the sound of the impact.

"Whatever. I don't have time for this okay" And with that he started to walk back out onto the hardwood floor.

"Troy. If she hasn't told you about this one thing what else hasn't she told you about?" Troy had always been against hitting girls, but the way she was going? He could understand why someone would want to punch her right in the face.

"Tara. Has anyone ever told you how annoying you are? And really saying things about my girlfriend and Sharpay? How the fuck is that going to get you to Chad? Get it through your head. Chad doesn't fucking want you." He yelled, he was pretty sure he was red with fury and anger.

Tara's mouth hung open dumbfounded.

"Now if you'll excuse me I have to get to my girlfriend." He carried on walking and when he realized that there was no echo of footsteps behind him, he knew that she wasn't following him. Thank god!

He walked through the lone empty, freezing corridors, feeling himself one step closer to the girl he loved. Soon enough his feet carried him to the cold air of the high school gym, and as if the rest of the court was in black and white he could see her in colour perfectly. She had red shorts on that showed off her mile long legs perfectly, and a red cami with a white jacket over the top, her hair was loosely down curled. To say she looked stunning was an understatement.

"There he is" Zeke's loud voice called across the spacey air of the hardwood of the room, causing the echo to bounce from the walls.

* * *

"You're quiet Troy." She let her cool breath leave her mouth and tickle against his skin.

She had come to his house that night to meet his parents, and the truth was that she had felt more nervous when Troy had come to her house to meet her sisters. "Well someone's got to be, these two do enough talking for me" He whispered back huskily in her ear. They were currently sitting on the couch drinking coffee. And she loved his parents. They were so lively, so bubbly.

"Gabriella, Troy's lucky to have you y'know. But its only tradition that we get the photo's out" Gabriella's sweet laugh left her throat as she looked at the slim women who had a cocky grin on her face and looking at Troy who had his eyes closed like he was about to be tortured in hell. She had red hair, and her piercing blue eyes mirrored her sons.

"No mom, it's not tradition. May Gabriella and I be excused?" Troy suggested and Gabriella suddenly became nervous. She couldn't help but feel it when she knew she was going to be alone with him, she didn't know how she was going to keep her hands off of him. On the way to Troy's house they had made out for 10 minutes which had resulted in Troy having to rush upstairs as soon as they had got there to shove ice water onto the tent in his pants.

"Yeah son, you can. Keep the door open alright?" Troy's father coaxed, casually but firmly. Troy smirked suggestively but solemnly nodded and looked in her direction.

"Don't worry dad. No grandkids until you're at least fifty." Troy teased and Gabriella immediately looked down at the floor in embarrassment.

"Damn right" His father replied jokingly and Gabriella started to follow Troy as he lead her down the corridor that lead to his room.

The walls and carpet were a navy blue and an orange border through the middle of the walls. Maybe in highlight of basketball? It seemed surreal. That she was in his room, the guy that every single girl in their class wanted and she was in his bedroom... with him.

The bed was situated in the middle of the room and the covers were blue to match the walls. The dresser was at the side and placed around the bed, above also. And next to the bed were a few pictures. But Gabriella suddenly felt a magnetic pull, a force inside of her motioning her to tell him. To tell him how she felt.

"Troy..."

"Gabriella..." They both smiled at the same time at the other one.

"You first." He motioned, Gabriella shook her head solemnly.

"No you go" She said cheerily. Troy took a deep breath. Like he was about to tell her something. But then he sighed, almost in defeat?

"Gabi..." Troy warned but she wanted to hear what he had to say before she blurted out the 'I love you's'. Besides her nerves were shooting through the roof.

"No Troy you go first" She pushed firmly and he nodded in defeat. Ha beat that Troy Bolton. She won!

"The truth is I was scared to talk to you when we first met" He blurted out quickly. Gabriella closed her eyes as if she hadn't heard him right. He was scared to talk to her? What the fuck?

"Why?" She asked through a half laugh of is he totally kidding and a what the hell is he talking about?

He pulled her hand and pulled her to sit on the egde of the bed towards him, and the hands that were tenderly placed on her lap were laced with his over sized ones. "Because you're unbelievably beautiful, sexy, smart and you're also confident in your own way but shy at the same time. You're stubborn, but at the same time you're the kindest girl I've ever met. And you know what? That scared me"

Okay. Now he was totally on crack. Never had she heard so much nonsense. "You're Troy Bolton. You know that every single girl at East High wants you to fuck them right?"

He chuckled throatily before pressing his cold lips to her toasty skin on her hand. "Nice way of putting it. But you seemed like the girl who didn't want me to just "fuck you". He used his pointer finger and middle finger and bent them vertically when he said the words 'fuck you'.

The sensuality of heat was rising in the room. It seemed like somebody had cranked up the heat that was coming from the radiators because Gabriella could feel herself start to sweat. She was breathing heavily as both of their heads were becoming more and more drawn to the other one. "I don't want you to just to fuck me." She whispered and rested her forehead onto his, the sparks raging through her blood stream

"Good because I love you. " Okay. She was totally dreaming! Troy seemed just as shocked that he had said it as did she, his mouth hung open in disbelief. "Fuck. God I didn't mean for it to slip out like that. But Gabriella Montez." He smirked as he pressed his lips to her hand. "I'm so in love with you"

Her mouth had dried up like the Sahara desert. No way, he was confessing his love for her. But she couldn't even bring herself to say anything she was that speechless. Troy had now looked down and his eyes were resting on the skin of her thigh. As if he was disappointed that she hadn't said anything. Seconds had trickled into hours before Gabriella finally found the words to say. She grabbed onto Troy's chin and forced him to look at her. The azure spheres penetrating through her.

"You know what Troy Bolton. When I look back to when Luke and I were dating and there's guys like him littered in the world? And the way that was going I could see myself having grey hair and having to have false teeth in the next year or so. But with you?" He looked directly into her eyes as soon as she had mentioned him. "I feel like love isn't a tap you turn on and off. I let you into my heart. As soon as I set my eyes on you I let you into my heart."

She connected their lips together in a slow sensual kiss. "And I fucking love you Troy Bolton. With all of my heart."

His features seemed to light up as soon as the words left her mouth. "You do? Like really?"

Gabriella nodded quickly before a beam broke out onto her face. "Like really really."

Troy's thin lips broke out into a beam. And he threw his arms around her small body and crushed her to him. "God I love you." He whispered into her curled hair.

"I love you too. So much." She replied, and for the first time in a long time she felt genuinely happy, like nothing would ever knock her down. But as long as she had him she would be fine right? "You'll never leave me right?"

Troy pulled away from her and looked deep into her eyes. Gabriella looking into his. The intent stare spilled out all of the love in the world.

"I'll never ever leave you. You're mine forever you hear me?" Gabriella knew he was being serious and she couldn't have been happier. Her heart was swelling and her cheeks were aching from smiling so much.

"I hear you. God I love you." Yeah nothing could ever bring her down now.

Or so she thought.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry that took forever! Things have just been really hectic at the minute, the workload at college has been herrendous and I really have to start revising for my exams that I have but these next 2 weeks I have off so things should be okay for the next 2 weeks :). So you know what to do :)**


	20. You Got It Bad

**A/N: There's not much to say about this chapter but I know that it's not the best one so far and it's not the best one to come either! So I hope you like it, but there's something I want to bring up, my updates are going to be coming abit slower at the minute with college and everything and there's some personal stuff going on with my boyfriend so we're trying to sort through things so please stick with me! And give me some nice feedback? or suggestions? or constructive criticism? In you're review. Thanks guys. You're all amazing. Hope you enjoy it...**

* * *

"_You are the reason that I breathe. You are the reason I still believe.  
__You are my destiny."_

Pussycat Dolls: Jai Ho

* * *

Her hands were roaming up his bare clammy chest. There was nothing more arousing than to see Gabriella's writhing form from beneath him. His hands were teasing her, he loved to tease her, his fingers were outlining each fold as if he was trying to memorise the exhilarating feel of them. Her hips were bucking upwards to get him to put his fingers inside of her.

But teasing her was more fun wasn't it?

The house was free. Well he had hoped it would be anyways. Gabriella had been driving him crazy all day, just the slightest touch from her made him want to strip her down and take her right there and then. And afterschool they had come to her house to find a note on the refrigerator saying that Alyssa Dan and Lucas had gone to the grocery store and Cheryl and Phoebe were both at work. They had both happily given into their raging hormones as soon as they had read the note. His hands had started to wonder and they hadn't even found themselves the couch, so instead they were lying on the floor. Both of their shirts were lying on the floor and Gabriella's jeans were also.

As soon as he plunged his fingers into her body he had felt nothing more than wanting to let go right there and then. He was wearing his sweats but the bulge wasn't that visible as they were baggy. And if Gabriella's sisters walked in and saw him with a bulge in his pants they would probably banish her from him.

It didn't take long before Troy's fingers found a steady rhythm and were curling around the warmth of his new favourite place in the world. There was nothing more that Troy wanted than to thrust himself inside of her but he knew they would have to wait for the perfect time for that. Gabriella's small body was writhing beneath him. His name was erotically been chanted, bouncing from the walls.

"Troy...." Her hand reached down to the hem of his sweats. He kissed her forehead tenderly.

"Just give in to it" He whispered and held his fingers in place for a second while he kissed the now sweaty hair that was rubbing up against the floor.

She nodded and her mouth was open gasping for air, the pressure was building, he could hear it in her erotic breathing. The way her head kept throwing itself back and her hips were grinding to the beat he was making. He stretched his fingers further inside of her to get her closer to letting go. His other hand reached to her swollen clitoris and started to press down like it was a button.

"TROY! Oh god..." He knew what was coming next. Her whole body froze, her head slung back and her body began to vibrate beneath him. Her eyes were squeezed tight as if she was letting the orgasm take her full being.

He pulled his two fingers out of her and kissed her forehead gently, her eyes were still closed and her chest was heaving up and down, so fucking sexy. So beautiful.

"I'm gonna go wash my hands okay. Love you" Now those three words were the words that he never got fed up of. The two syllables those were so powerful, Gabriella nodded her heavy head.

"Love you too" Her tired voice literally sung to him.

He stood up and grabbed his t shirt on his way out of the room adjusting it over his body, washing his hands and walking back into the room he could have only been at the most 2 minutes and Gabriella was fully clothed and sitting on the couch with a coy smile on her face.

"What?" He asked with the same smirk.

"I was just thinking about how gorgeous my boyfriend is." How could one person's voice be so sexy? Her legs were folded beneath her and her head was rested on her hand. She had her body tilted sideways towards him. And her elbow was curved onto the back of the couch.

"Oh yeah? Do I know him?" He flirted back with her and looked up to the midnight black hair that covered her head, which was sticking up and out in all places indicating she hadn't just been sitting in watching a movie with Troy, like he hoped her sisters would think.

She giggled her sweet laugh before massaging her shoulder a little. "Well you might. He's incredibly hot. But he's sweet and kind and loving. But he has these amazing hands" She smiled suggestively and seductively curled a piece of her hair around her finger.

God he was getting horny. Damn stupid male fucking hormones. But wouldn't any guy get horny when she was around? "Do you think you wanna go into detail about the hot bit?"

Gabriella bit her lip in a teasing way and made a pondering noise while bobbing her head from side to side. Her nose scrunched up. God could she be more adorable? "Um well he's tall. He's got this silly hair that sweeps over his eyes but oh my, his eyes, sometimes when I look into them, I feel like I could get lost. But then oh my god his body, is definitely to die for."

Troy laughed heartily. 2 people could play her game. He walked over to her and sat down next to her feeling her body lol onto his. "Well I have this girlfriend... and I'm so in love with her my heart aches when I think about her"

Gabriella beamed brightly. "I love you."

He pressed their lips together in a sensual kiss. "I love you too. Never gets old does it?"

Gabriella shook her head quickly, the smile still evident on her face. "When I love someone I really love them, y'know I let them into my heart and it's the best feeling in the world."

She was just amazing. He couldn't even describe how he felt about her other than he was in love with her and he never wanted to lose her. Crazy right he was 17 years old but he knew that he had already found the one? "So am I in your heart?" He used his pointer finger to rest it on her blood pumping organ.

She nodded even though he couldn't see her and brought her hand down to rest on his finger. "You're locked in there and you're never coming out."

The sensuality in the air of the room was too thick, he covered his mouth with hers and immediately, his tongue slipped into her mouth. His body fell on top of hers on the couch. He swore there was something about this couch because every single time he was sitting on it he felt like he wanted Gabriella more. Stupid? Yeah of course it was. He wanted her all of the time. His hormones were raging. He and Gabriella were so wrapped up into each other they didn't hear the creak of the door opening, the echo of footsteps on the floor it wasn't until they heard.....

"Oh my god." Troy's azure eyes widened. This couldn't be happening. He was totally banned from seeing Gabriella now. His body reflexively jumped up from Gabriella's and Gabriella's eyes spheres were shut tight with her dazzling white teeth dug into her bottom plump lip. But she also looked what was that? Amused?

"This looks cosy." Cheryl chimed with an amused smirk on her face. Troy now was a blood shade red. He couldn't believe it, but also he silently thanked that the two of them for not walking in on them say what 10 minutes ago? When Gabriella was totally naked and he was half. Fate was on his side.

"I guess there's no need for me to ask what's going on here then." Phoebe was also highly amused. But Troy didn't know what at, if he had a younger sister and he would have walked in on her with her boyfriend on top of her. He certainly would not, be laughing.

Gabriella sat up with the same look on her face but almost as if nothing had happened, Troy on the other hand? He was never going to return to the house again. Ever. Not even if he was allowed to! The embarrassment, fuck he couldn't even think about it. Gabriella patted Phoebe lightly on the shoulder. "Well don't ask then."

Cheryl turned in Gabriella's direction; she was looking at Troy, clearly amused like she was not at all fazed. What the fuck was wrong with her? "You guys know what sex is right?"

Oh no. He had never had the birds and the bee's chat with his own parents let alone Gabriella's sisters. Just get him out of there. Just get him out. "So do you want me to say that it's dirty and you'll go to hell for it?"

Cheryl chuckled and turned to look in Troy's direction. "In reality, yeah. What's the matter Troy? Lost your tongue?"

Oh god. Yes he fucking had. He couldn't find it. It had run away somewhere never to return again. "No..." He replied in a much higher tone than his usual voice. He cleared his throat before standing up and reaching back to massage the nape of his neck out of nervousness. "I mean no."

Gabriella giggled sweetly. "We're going upstairs. Troy come on" Were they? Phoebe and Cheryl also looked oblivious to the matter.

"Gabriella keep the..." Cheryl began before Gabriella's honey voice but in.

"Door open? Yes I got it." Troy's tanned face flashed red as he walked past the two sisters, and as he passed them they both burst into hysterical laughter. God get him out of there get him out of there now! Why the hell was he following her upstairs again? Oh yeah because he had never been into her room before and he craved it.

Before he knew it Gabriella's hand was on the doorknob but she immediately turned around and her back was pressed up against the mahogany door. "You have to excuse the mess" She nodded her head as if to confirm that was what she meant, or else she would kill him or something.

Within seconds Gabriella had opened the door and stepped inside her spacious bedroom. He was stood just staring, damn it Bolton what the fuck are you doing? "Didn't your mom ever tell you it was rude to stare?"

With that Troy stepped over the threshold and was immediately hit with the strawberries and cream scent of Gabriella that intoxicated him, the smell he woke up for on a morning and went to sleep for at night. She pushed the door but even then she managed to be seductive as fuck as she did. And then he narrowed his eyes on the bed. There was a snow white jacket lying on the bed, with a crimson stripe down the sleeve.

That was his jacket.

Gabriella looked in his eye line and saw the jacket lying there. She dived and covered her hand over his eyes. "Don't look okay. Just don't look."

She removed her hand and jumped over to the bed. Troy opened his eyes and looked at her sat on the top of the jacket.

"So that's where my jacket's been" He pointed over at her accusingly but joking with her at the same time. Gabriella sighed in defeat and pulled the jacket out from under her and rested it on her lap

"Okay so there's this thing. I have this jacket because it smells like you. I'm a freak yeah I know" She nodded her gorgeous head agreeing to her own statement. _"_ But I've had it for so long now that it doesn't smell like you anymore it smells like me."

How adorable was his girlfriend? He looked at her seriously and her head dropped to stare intently at the jacket as she played with the collar, the material slid through her fingers. "Well i want it back now"

Gabriella frowned and her mouth hung open. "Why?" She protested.

"So I can smell how good you smell whenever I miss you." He stated as if it was obvious. Of course it was obvious he wanted to smell her all of the time. Back to what Gabriella had said, if she was a freak? He sure as hell was too.

But instead of her protesting more her mouth opened in adoration. "Aww, you miss me? When?"

Not only was she beautiful but she was so stupid. He walked over to the bed and sat down on the comfort of the most intimate place of her room. "Just about every second I'm not with you"

"You remember when we had the burglar right after I moved here and you helped me and when I was crying?" Troy nodded as his arm draped over Gabriella's figure protectively. "I felt so safe from everything, like nothing could ever harm me and now every time you put your arms around me, I feel the same way, safe, protected."

Troy smiled slightly, his heart swelling at the sound of Gabriella's hypnotic voice. "I would never let anything hurt you okay, not under my watch I love you you're the biggest part of my life, my present my future and I'm never letting you go, you're mine forever."

Gabriella beamed brightly at him and covered her mouth over his, her lips squeezed at his bottom one. But the moment was short live when Gabriella groaned and Troy felt something vibrate against him. Gabriella whipped out her cell and pushed it to her ear.

Her brow furrowed. "What? Calm down"

She stood up from the bed but connected her hand with his, he squeezed it lightly and she turned to him and shrugged her shoulders loosely. "Um... okay if that's what you need. I'll see you soon? Okay.....bye"

She slid the cell phone down and threw it onto the bed before turning to Troy with a look of guilt in her stunning brown spheres. "Troy? Um can you take me to Sharpay's?"

The hope bled through her voice, the desperation also. She seemed hurt, something Troy hated to see. He felt his heart crack at the sight of her face that was contorted with hurry. "You okay?"

He gently pulled her arm and let her fall onto his knee, her head fell in the crook of his neck. "Zeke finished things with Sharpay. She's really upset"

Her voice was hushed against his neck and he couldn't help but feel shivers run up and down his spine at the feeling of her breath against his sensitive skin. "You want me to take you there right now?"

Gabriella hesitated but nodded slightly. "I think that's best."

Troy nodded reluctantly, not wanting to give her up. He kissed the cushion of her hair.

"Come on lets go then"

* * *

"Shar I'm so sorry." Taylor had a hold of Sharpay's hand, sitting on the queen sized pink covers.

Gabriella had been there for around 15 minutes and hadn't really said a word. What could she say? She didn't know what happened and he wasn't sure if she wanted to or not. Did she dump him? Did he dump her? All she wanted to do was be back in Troy's arms. Selfish? Yeah, of course it was but she couldn't do anything to adjust Sharpay's pain could she? Sharpay's milk chocolate glazed eyes look up to meet Gabriella's.

"He'll see what he's missing out on I promise." Gabriella tenderly informed her. What else could she say?

Sharpay laughed slightly through the sobs. "I don't really wanna talk about it."

Gabriella smiled solemnly. She felt a swell of sorrow and guilt directed at Sharpay. She had gone through so much, to keep her 'relationship' with Zeke better and she had ended up losing him and losing her baby. How much heartbreak could one person take? "Good because I don't know what else to say"

Sharpay laughed, and it seemed like a genuine one. She lifted the soaking wet tissue to dry her wet eyes. But they were just wetting them more in reality. The mascara was streaming down her face.

"How did it happen?" Taylor pressed carefully. Gabriella moved her weight so she was sitting on the other side of Sharpay and lent her head on her shoulder to silently tell her that she was there.

"He um, he called me. And said he'd been thinking and he said that he couldn't get his head around the lies and he couldn't stand the whole no strings thing anymore and said... h..he" A fresh batch of tears let themselves free from the prison that was her spheres. "He said I... c...changed"

"Oh honey" Taylor threw her arms around Sharpay's thin body.

Sharpay wriggled out of Taylors grasp and looked at Kelsi who was sitting on the other side of Taylor. "Enough of my nonexistent love life. So how's yours Kelsi?"

Kelsi raised her thin eyebrows and laughed slightly. "You really don't wanna know."

A coy smile grew on Gabriella's tan face. "We do Kels. Come on." She coaxed, trying her best to get the focus off of Sharpay and onto Kelsi. Hadn't she been through enough?

Kelsi shrugged her shoulders loosely before Sharpay's blonde hair whipped around as she looked at Kelsi. "Oh come on Kels. I hear the little phone calls, I don't hear what they say but I do know that Ryan does get all red when his phone rings"

Kelsi's jaw hung open and her high cheeks flushed crimson, and she looked down to her lap.

"Like that" Gabriella pointed accusingly at Kelsi, but she was only kidding with her of course.

"Does he really go red?" Kelsi's timid voice chimed.

Gabriella's smile widened. "Oh yeah he does" Sharpay replied. "So what's going on?"

Kelsi's lip diverted to the side, so it looked like she was pouting. "Um, nothing really"

Kelsi's tone was shifty, and awkward and timid. Something Gabriella was accustomed to. Gabriella tilted her head sideways and cocked her eyebrow at Kelsi's comment. "Oh come on Kels"

Gabriella turned her head to the blonde, the waters had stopped streaming down her face, and she was sniffling but only every couple of minutes now. Overall the shift in conversation was a good thing. "We went on a date on Friday night"

As soon as the words left her mouth she held her hand over as if it was a sin what she was saying. All the other jaws in the room literally dropped to the floor. "What was that?" Sharpay turned her head around to face Gabriella.

"I don't know" Gabriella shrugged.

"Guys come on" Kelsi shifted awkwardly. Her thin shoulders shrugged and her head twitched out of her nerves. "You heard me"

Gabriella's lips tugged sideward's into a smirk. "Did you hear that Tay?"

Taylor's bobbed hair swayed side to side as her rounded head shook. "No I didn't hear anything. Kelsi what was that?"

Kelsi let out a long defeated sigh and brought up her thumb and her first finger to pinch the top of her nose in frustration. "We went on a date. There! Are you guys happy now?" Kelsi usually small voice had risen in a result of her little outburst. But then she bit down onto her bottom lip, with a mischievous grin on her face.

"Was it good?" Sharpay pried, her milky brown eyes were double in size, and excitement gleamed in her irises. As if for the first time the whole night she wasn't thinking about her 'break-up' with Zeke.

"Where did you guys go?" Taylor grinned like a Cheshire cat. Funny that herself Taylor and Sharpay were all sharing the same beam of excitement and Kelsi was just staring down into her lap.

"Did you guys kiss?" Gabriella added, clenching her fists together through all of her excitement and letting a low squeal escape from her mouth.

"Yes it was good." Kelsi pointed to Sharpay. "We went to a little restaurant down by the beach" She pointed her other finger at Taylor. And then she shifted her gaze to Gabriella who was still staring and grinning like a child on Christmas. But then again Gabriella had always been a kid at heart. "And yes we kissed. Numerous times. Happy?"

Sharpay, Taylor and Gabriella all broke out into high pitch squeals and laughter. Gabriella let her body fall backwards and she kicked her long slender legs in the air. "Oh my god. I'm so happy."

A small laugh escaped from Kelsi's pursed lips. Sharpay attached her hand to Kelsi's small one. "Kelsi. I may be going through a hard time right now, but shit. I need details. Even if it is my brother, we're going to pretend that it's not okay. Now come on, spill" Sharpay pressed forcefully.

Kelsi smiled embarrassedly. "Okay so, he took us to this little restaurant bought dinner, we talked about things and said that we were gonna take things slow" Kelsi pronounced the word slow, slowly, ironically. Gabriella beamed and looked at Sharpay who was doing the exact same thing. "And then he drove me home and we made out in his car for 20 minutes."

Kelsi's words got quieter as each one left her mouth. And she hung her head as if she was ashamed.

"Oh my god totally forgetting that's my brother. Kelsi you slut." Sharpay smiled half heartedly. Kelsi's head snapped back up and looked as if she was hurt by Sharpay's comment. "Relax. I'm kidding."

Taylor looked at the other three girls intently. "So where do we go from here then?"

Gabriella suddenly had a feeling that she wasn't referring to the conversation they had just shared with Kelsi about Ryan. Sharpay sighed deeply and looked at Kelsi and Gabriella and then to Taylor, each in turn. Her thinning shoulders shrugged loosely and she looked down to the ground.

"I wish I knew."


	21. Closer

**A/N: just a quick one as I've left one at the bottom make sure you read it guys, just to say that I know that the quote has NOTHING to do with the chapter but it seemed right to put it in there as 17 again comes out in the UK on friday and I myself am rushing out of work just so I can see it! Anyways I hope you like the chapter **

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_"What are you eating?  
I don't even know, all I know is that I'm hungry...  
... *all* the time."_

Mike O Donnell + Ned Freeman: 17 Again

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"So did you think that was okay?" Gabriella asked, shrugging her thin shoulders as she turned the dial down and heard the click as the power cut out. She bit down on her plump bottom lip; the nerves were rising in her stomach. She looked down to the floor in anticipation of what was to leave her sisters mouth in the next few minutes.

Phoebe sighed deeply before looking at the four girls intently. "Well" She practically sang with a bright beam on her slightly pale face. "I took it back to the rest of the guys last night." Phoebe had referred to how she had taken Gabriella, Taylor Kelsi and Sharpay's demo of the song 'fling' to her company last night and told Gabriella that she would deliver the outcome, right about... "And they loved it." An ecstatic beam broke out onto Gabriella's face. "They loved it so much that we want to put you through to the second round of the competition." Phoebe's beam was so wide; it was threatening to stretch off of her rounded face.

Gabriella's jaw was dropped to the floor. She looked to Taylor and Kelsi who had the same ecstatic beam on their faces. And then she looked to Sharpay...

Never had she seen someone so broken, not even on the day she had gone with her for the abortion. It had been 3 days since her and Zeke had broken up and each day she had more or less deteriorated even more. If Gabriella was to see a person slowly dying, she thought this would be how it would happen. She had grown quieter, more distant. She was barely talking to anyone now it would be a few words here and there but that was the most you would get from her. And Gabriella was sure that she would be doing the same thing. If Troy and she were to break up she was definitely sure that her heart would be breaking slowly and then she would just be sure to die when it hurt too much to just breathe.

Zeke would pass them in the hallway and wouldn't say a word to Sharpay. Gabriella and Troy's relationship was feeling the strain of it also because they couldn't see each other inside of school like they usually would and he would have basketball practice after school almost every day so they weren't seeing each other as much. Currently Sharpay was sitting on the window ledge with her legs hugged tight to her body; her hair was completely scraped from her deadly white face. The only colour that was present on her skin was the slightly purple wrinkled skin around her eyes and the crimson veins in her eyes.

"Isn't this good Shar?" Taylor coaxed, trying to include her in the conversation. But Sharpay was just staring off into the distance out of the window helplessly. "Shar?"

Sharpay shook her head as if she was shaking herself from her trance like state. "What?"

Taylor sighed in annoyance. The air all of a sudden got thicker, like there was a storm brewing. Phoebe must have sensed the tension in the air because she turned her slim body to Gabriella. "Gabi, I'm gonna go. I'll see to you tonight right?"

Gabriella nodded slowly while not taking her eyes off of Taylor who had annoyance written all over her face. "Oh... um. I'm going to Troy's so I'll see you when I get home"

Phoebe's arched plucked eyebrows lifted upwards suggestively. She started to walk out of the room before leaning over to Gabriella's small figure and whispering in her ear. "Use protection."

Gabriella flashed red. Worse than red. Her chocolate brown eyes dived from her head and she was pretty sure they were rolling around on the floor somewhere. Besides the fact she and Troy didn't do that. She wanted to! But they didn't do that. And if they were doing _that _then she sure as hell wouldn't let her sisters know about it. "Get." Gabriella scolded and pointed towards the door. Phoebe grinned mischievously before walking out of the door. The change in the air was definitely not good.

"Shar, talk to us." Taylor spoke softly approaching the distraught blonde.

"There's nothing to say." Her voice wasn't harsh, it wasn't snappy. It was extremely hoarse and she just sounded exhausted. There was no other way to describe it. It was kind of heartbreaking. "I got my heart broken. I'll just have to put the pieces back together."

Gabriella felt a motherly need wash over the once happy cocky person, she felt like it was her fault. The guilt had been in the pit of her stomach since Zeke had approached her that day. What if she had said something? What if she had done something for Zeke to break up with her? "Has he called you or anything?"

Sharpay turned her irises to Gabriella's thin body. She shrugged her sickly thin shoulders upwards and then turned towards the window again. As if she found it easier to look outside into the distance than the three caring females who were wishing the best for her? "Not a word, I tried to call him but I got his voicemail and I called his house and his mom like paused after I asked for him and then tried palming the; oh he's in the shower honey shit." She mimicked as if she knew that Zeke's mother would be lying to her.

"Zeke's hurting too Shar." Kelsi's timid voice added, before she went and timidly sat down on the ledge and rested her hand on Sharpay's charcoal covered pants, the style was baggy, but it was so baggy on her thin legs it made her thighs look extremely thin.

"Don't you think I know that?" Sharpay exclaimed, as if it was obvious. "And it hurts me more knowing that I caused that pain."

Gabriella turned her chocolate eyes back to her depressed friend. Something that she was responsible for, no doubt. If only she would have told Zeke how much she loved him, how much she aborted her child for him. But she didn't did she? How fucking stupid was she? "Shar you've gotta figure out what _you _want"

Sharpay inhaled deeply. Her hazel eyes diverted back to Gabriella for a split second and then they rested on the floor. "I want him. I want all of him. I want to be the wallpaper on his cell phone. I want him to come up to me in the corridor and hug me and kiss me and tell me how much he loves me." Sharpay took a shaky breath to curb the tears from falling. She reached into her jacket pocket and lifted out her cell phone and held up the illuminated object with a picture of her and Zeke on the front. "Like that. We haven't spoken in weeks and I still can't fucking change it!" The tears were rapidly falling from Sharpay's exhausted eyes and she launched the baby pink cell phone across the room and her head fell rested on her knees that were hugged to her chest. In the distance Gabriella heard the crash of her phone falling to the ground, and the cracks of it breaking.

"Shar." Gabriella whispered, as if she was trying to calm down the mood of the room. She timidly walked over to Sharpay, and felt the weight ease from her feet as she knelt down and rested her hand on Sharpay's knee. "Look, sweetie. I don't wanna upset you and call me out of line, but if he doesn't come around then you have to move on. This" She pointed over to the phone that was rested on the floor somewhere. "This isn't good for you okay, you're gonna end up making yourself sick. And then we'll have to do something drastic. If Zeke doesn't come around then it shows how much of a dick he is doesn't it. But call it a gut feeling that he's gonna come back." Sharpay let out a sad laugh, and then pursed her pale lips together and smiling sadly at Gabriella's face, which had a few stray tears falling from her chocolate orbs.

"Thanks for always knowing what to say." Sharpay reached up to wipe the tears from her face.

Gabriella smiled back at her. "Let me see that smile."

Sharpay smiled with her lips pursed together. "No. No I wanna see the teeth Shar, the teeth."

A few sounds of sad laughter filled the room and Sharpay flexed her cheek muscles to pull her lips apart and all of her teeth were clenched together. In a scary kind of way, something you might see on Halloween. Gabriella laughed slightly. "That's better than nothing."

"I'm proud of you y'know that right." His husky voice whispered down to her. Gabriella smiled blissfully at him but her mind still couldn't help but to wander to earlier on that day with Sharpay's little breakdown, and how she was going to help her pull things together.

But she had to get over it right?

It wasn't really her problem and here she was sitting with the most gorgeous male that she would probably ever see in her mind, his arm was wrapped protectively around her shoulders as if he was telling everyone that she was his. But there was no one else there. And to say Troy was horny, yeah that was an understatement. The minute she had stepped through the door he couldn't take her arms off of her. He always seemed to be having some kind of contact with her.

But she could play with him, couldn't she?

"Oh yeah?" Gabriella whispered seductively and her hand wandered up his built chest, her index finger making small trails up his shirt.

He groaned slightly and Gabriella could imagine his eyes were closed at the impact of her fingers running up and down his clothed skin. "Yeah. I think you might need a reward."

And there it was.

Gabriella bit down on her lip anxiously. She couldn't do it. As much as she craved his fingers or better yet his tongue down there. She couldn't. "Um, we can't. I have my period."

Troy exhaled sharply but still placed his hand on the curve of her waistline and began to make invisible marks there. "It's okay. We can watch a movie or something." Gabriella knew that Troy was doing his best to suppress his horny side. But she loved the horny side of Troy more than anything.

"Nah-uh." She practically sung and her fingers trailed own to the material that was covering him. "We could um..." She pulled lightly on the waistband of his sweats and let the material snap against his skin. So she could see a peak of his golden skin.

She heard him take a sharp intake of breathe. "Y...you're sure?"

They had never done this. In all of the time they had been together she had seen all of Troy Bolton, but she had never felt him. She nodded confidently and turned around to face him, with the confident look in her chocolate brown eyes. She bit down on her pale lips and nodded slightly.

Her lips connected with his, but when his lips connected back there was a force to be reckoned with. It wasn't just a kiss; it was a hungry kiss, his arms clung onto her like he was clinging on for life. He hovered his built figure over hers and dangerously rubbed against hers, and she could already feel a pulse starting to form between her parted legs. She could already start to feel the excitement of him growing against her thigh.

"You're so fucking..." He started as her breath hitched and his lips connected with her neck where he started to suck and nibble at her skin. Gabriella's back arched to meet his teasing lips. "Beautiful"

Gabriella's hands worked at the bottom of his t shirt bringing it up over his body, their lips breaking apart for a split second for the shirt to be discarded on his bedroom floor. His parents had gone out for the evening and Gabriella now knew that it was a good job they had because she wasn't sure how long she'd be able to contain herself without some kind of sexual contact with him. She took a minute to look at his golden skin, her hands trailed up his shaped and defined six pack. Her tiny clammy hands rested on the curve of his shoulders to pull her back down towards him.

Their lips danced together in a fury, her lips were forced apart by his tongue that was battling with her own. She trailed her hands down to the sweat pants and began to pull at the material. "Hold on" He smiled into her skin. Oh no. He didn't want to do this anymore. And she was so fucking horny that she wouldn't have listened to him. His lips broke away from all contact with her writhing body and she whimpered at the lack of feelings that he _should _have been invoking on her. "You're wearing too many clothes."

He raised his eyebrows suggestively and ferociously gripped at her violet cami and pulled it over her head leaving her exposed in a black bra. He moved his lips down to the mounds of her chest and began nipping at her skin. Gabriella had never felt so turned on by him; she could feel herself becoming wetter as the seconds went on. And she was pretty sure that if she didn't place her hands on him soon she was going to explode. Soon he had unclasped he bra and she immediately felt self conscious infront of him. He thought they were too small. He had never seen them before and she just wanted to crawl into a hole and never come back out. But as soon as it happened his lips moved over her newly found bare breast and his lips fell upon her pegged nipple and he playfully nipped her breast.

Her hand moved down his sweats and she moved her calves up to rest on the top of his to aid her to pull the sweats down. How she did it she didn't know and the sweats were on the floor and there Troy was. The only thing that was separating her from him was the white boxer shorts that she desperately wanted to pull down. Her timid fingers fell to his hips where she gently pulled down the material.

She stared down at Troy's stiff erection. It was almost as beautiful as him. If that was even possible? She took a deep breath and trailed her hand up the shaft with the back of her fingers. "Holy shit." Troy moaned and his eyes closed erotically along with his head being shifted back onto the pillow.

Her hand then gripped onto his member and she began to move it up and down at a steady pace. His breath was becoming hitched and she could hear him inhaling as quick as he could as if his lungs were burning and he were being cut off from all oxygen. Her other hand reached up to steady herself on his abs that were sticky from the sweat but she didn't care. His eyes were shut blissfully and she knew what was about to come.

She quickened her pace and Troy's intake for breath became quicker, it was almost nonexistent. Like he had stopped breathing. His member twitched into her hands and then the chalky coloured liquid wet her hand. Her name echoed from the walls. His hands were gripped onto his bedspread and his chest was heaving up and down as he was trying to catch his breath.

Gabriella took the opportunity to go and wash her hands before the liquid were to dry and stick to them. She had done this with Luke plenty of times but she never actually washed her hands afterwards, it was like he intimidated her that much that she didn't dare move when he was around. But Troy was different.

So different.

She returned to the bedroom to see that Troy was gone from the bed and she immediately thought what if he was the same? What if he was like Luke and didn't want her to leave after she had just given him a hand job? What if he was offended that she washed the evidence from her hand? "Troy..." She whispered in a timid voice.

But her voice was cut off when the door slammed behind her. Gabriella's small frame jumped from her skin as she turned to see that Troy was standing behind the door, if she wouldn't have been so afraid she would have noticed that he placed some new boxers on. He had an amused smile on his face, which was until he saw hers. His smile dropped and he walked over to her and placed his hands on her upper arms and forced her to look up into his blue eyes. "Hey. Are you alright?" he asked forcefully.

But the look in his eye was different to any that Luke had ever given her. The love was swelling from his spheres as they penetrated into hers. She shook her head from all thoughts of her dick of an ex boyfriend and melted into Troy's embrace. "I'm fine." She informed him and she felt his arms wrap around her and pull her closer so she could feel the impact of his built torso pushed up against her own. "Was that okay?"

He pressed his lips to her black hair and rubbed her bare back soothingly. "That was more than okay." He grinned.

The sweat that was on Troy's body previously must have been drying because he was beginning to shiver in her grasp. But deep down her had hoped that it was from her being in his arms. "I love you." She whispered and kissed his right pectoral.

The sensuality in the room heightened when he brought her from his body and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I love you too. More than you'll ever know. I'm never letting you go you know that right?"

Gabriella smiled slightly and looked up into his piercing eyes. "I don't ever want you to let me go."

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**A/N: I know it was kinda short but forgive me lol :). Anyways you know what to do! But I aso have a new story in the works. Which is going to be up in a few hours. So make sure I'm added to you're author alert list so you can give it a read and give it a chance. Thanks for all the kind reviews, thank you for reading also! **


	22. Save Me

**A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews. And I'd also like to apologize for the shortness and the boringness of this chapter, but don't worry the next ones going to be a big one! I know what I want to write but I'm hoping it just comes out right, so if there's a delay then you know why! And if your getting fed up of the whole Sharpay/Zeke thing then don't worry it's all going to solve itself sooner or later! And make sure that you check out my new story the first chapter is up, like I said it's only going to be a short one. But I hope you like it and don't forget to give me your feedback. Oh and I went to see 17 again around 5 hours ago. Oh my, it was absolutely amazing! I also cried my little eyes out! But Zac was absolutely amazing! I totally advise you to go and watch it. **

**And if you want something else to read check out ‏'s stories, the links on my profile! Thanks guys :) **

**Oh and don't forget to press that little review button at the bottom of the page and let me know but don't worry and bare with me it's going to pick up I promise! What a long A/N! Hope you enjoy the chapter! **

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_"I hate you for making me want you so much."_

Edward Cullen: Twilight

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If you could combine all of the emotions in one room at one time then you probably wouldn't be able to stand the heat in all of the room, the tension. It seemed like everyone was going to crack. But when Gabriella Montez put her mind to something she was always going to get what she wanted. And Gabriella had never been more determined to put on the best show of her life, than she ever had before.

Sharpay hadn't gotten any better. She had still been moping around in her sweats. She had told Gabriella that she had spoken to Zeke on the phone and he had just basically told her to fuck off. Gabriella had even tried to talk to him, but it didn't seem to work. She had approached him in the corridor earlier on that day but he had just rushed off, telling her that he had to go to basketball practice. Which probably was the truth, but still!

Taylor was getting pissed with Sharpay's constant mood swings and quietness. But had Taylor ever suffered from a broken heart? Probably not, it was something Gabriella could relate to. Not in that kind of context. When she went out with Luke she thought that she was in love with him, and when they broke up of course she was devastated but now she had met Troy, he had given love a new meaning to her. Corny? Yeah, of course she knew that.

"So do we have the music sorted Gabriella?" Taylor's deep voice brought her from her thoughts. Her black shaped eyebrows were raised at Gabriella who was staring into the distance.

"Yeah. Phoebe helped me sort it out last night..." She answered distantly.

"And the costumes?" It seemed as though Kelsi was the nervous one of the bunch. Gabriella and Sharpay had got together to design some costumes for them to wear for their performance.

They were going to be performing 'fling', infront of judges that would be controlling their future. And it scared Gabriella to no end. The concept of her future, she always thought that she would be able to grip her own future in her own hands. Of course she had been offered recording contracts with Phoebe and her company but she had never taken them. She didn't want the easy way out. She wanted to finish high school and go to college. But the circumstances somehow changed when she had left San Francisco. She hadn't applied for any colleges. So her plan had changed.

"They're done too. I need to pick them up tomorrow." She added, again distantly, she didn't even know what was wrong with her. Maybe it was the fact that she hadn't seen Troy in over 3 days. It was driving her insane. They didn't really have a reason why they hadn't seen each other; they just hadn't gotten around to it.

"Sharpay?" Taylor had constantly been trying to get through to Sharpay. But it hadn't worked. It seemed as though Sharpay was getting more irritable when it came to Taylor. Then the familiar sound of Sharpay's ring tone of 'use somebody' filled Gabriella's ears. It carried on for some time, it was like she hadn't even noticed it. Infact it was like someone had just died.

"Shar, you're cell's ringing..." Gabriella probed before Sharpay shook her blonde head and reached down into her pocket, for a split second Gabriella thought she saw a glint of hope and excitement in her spheres.

But it was true. Sharpay looked up at the three girls with a hopeful smile on her face, the first real smirk Gabriella had seen for weeks. She bit down on her bottom lip as if she didn't want to answer it. "It's Zeke" She beamed. It was if she was so happy that she was going to cry.

Gabriella smiled brightly at her. "Well answer it then."

Sharpay nodded eagerly before pressing the baby pink cell phone to her small ear. "Hello..." And then she walked out of the room.

"He better be fucking pouring out his hearts contents." Taylor almost scoffed. The weird thing was that Taylor was sort of blaming Zeke for Sharpay's breakdown. But it wasn't really his fault was it? If Sharpay would've told him then would they be in this situation? It was something Gabriella would never really know.

"I've never seen her like this." Kelsi whispered. It was so unlike Kelsi to talk about someone behind their back, well it wasn't like they were talking about Sharpay behind her back. But they were just concerned! Gabriella felt like she had to be checking her wrists or something.

Taylor shook her slender head as her bobbed hair matched. "Me neither. Gab was she this bad when you went with her to...."

It was as if she wouldn't say the word clinic, like the ground would swallow her whole and she would be rotting away in hell if she did so. Gabriella's head shook. She had cried, she had cried alot, but at least then she was showing emotion. Now she wasn't showing anything. She was just basically existing. Not living. Gabriella never hoped she would have to suffer like this when it came to Troy. Because she knew she wouldn't have to check her wrists if she ever broke up with Troy. "She just cried."

Taylor sighed deeply, as if she was in thought. "Zeke fucking Baylor. What a dick!"

"He's hurting too Tay. You've got to remember that." Kelsi's timid voice fought Zeke's corner. Gabriella didn't really want to say much. Obviously she had a point of view, she thought that Sharpay and Zeke should be together but that wasn't down to her. It was down to them.

"Yeah but if they both stopped fucking around and get back together then neither of them would be hurting would they?" Taylor took a deep breath after her sudden outburst. "It's just so fucked up."

Gabriella's eyebrows rose. "I know. But all we can do it be there for her. That's if she wants our help. But what else can we do?"

Taylor's shoulders shrugged innocently. "That's all we can do I guess. Or we could perform Chinese water torture on Zeke; hopefully it will make him come to his senses."

Gabriella and Kelsi both laughed slightly. "So Gabi, how nervous are you for this?" Taylor referred to the performance they would be doing.

She bit down on her bottom lip slightly. "Honestly? I'm really really nervous, more nervous to do it infront of Troy though" Just the sound of his name caused butterflies to start in the pit of her stomach.

Taylor and Kelsi both smiled. "Why?" Kelsi asked while pushing the rim up on her glasses.

"Because" Gabriella started shyly. "He's never seen me do anything like this so it's just gonna be enough going out there and singing when seriously I'm not charismatic I can't sing infront of all those people, but knowing that he's gonna be there seeing his face. I seriously don't know how I'm gonna do it."

And then it dawned on her. What if she were to collapse? Oh no. "Oh my god! What if I can't do it. I've seriously never thought about it like that before." But then she felt two hands rest against her shoulders to aid her.

"Gabriella. You are going to be fine!" Taylor attempted to reassure her. "So how's things with Troy?" She probed, her eyebrows rose suggestively.

She knew that look! Besides she hadn't told anyone about her relationship with Troy. Gabriella was private like that. She never liked to tell people about her relationship and with Troy, it made things feel more mysterious. It was an edgy side of the relationship. And she loved it. "What? Is it compulsory to wear your panties as leg warmers on your first date?"

And then she heard a snort come from the corner of the room. Kelsi had her hand held securely over her mouth and nose to snort her giggles. Her sweet innocent giggles. Taylor had a giant smirk on her face.

"What, Is it?" Gabriella asked obliviously, her two best friends were laughing uncontrollably.

But the happiness was short lived when she heard a loud sob from the doorway. She turned and saw Sharpay holding her nose as if she was trying to control the noise that was being emitted from her small face.

"Sharpay, what is it?" Taylor, Gabriella and Kelsi all rushed to Gabriella's side in a heartbeat.

"H....he s...said" The words weren't even coming out, the sobs were overpowering the words that were coming from her mouth.

"Just breathe, calm down." Gabriella soothed, rubbing her clothed arm.

"He... t..told me to l....leave hi...him alone, and that wh...when I see him to just pass him... in the h..hallway. He said that we're.... we're" Gabriella had never heard someone's voice so distressed and broken. It was heartbreaking.

"You're?" Kelsi urged.

"We're over..." That was it. The barriers were completely broken. It was as if she had said it and then she had really confirmed it to herself. "I can't do this... I just can't."

And with that she was gone.

The November air made the small hairs on her arms stand up. Her body was fatigued and she didn't know how she was going to get home. She didn't think her small body could carry her that far. She missed Troy like crazy. It was like she was having withdrawal symptoms from him. But if you went out with someone like that, no scratch that. If you were in love with someone who looked like that wouldn't you get withdrawal symptoms?

As if on cue, like he had telepathy skills. Like he knew exactly where she was going to be, at that exact time. "Hi beautiful." His voice almost sounded like a whisper to her.

"How did you know where I was gonna be? She asked while her lips curved upwards into a blissful smile.

"I just know you that's all. You alright? Fuck I've missed you." She didn't know which part to answer first. Whether to say she was absolutely petrified of what was about to come and how she thought Sharpay was going to ruin it for the rest of them. Selfish huh? Or for her to say that she had missed him uncontrollably and felt like she was going insane every waking second that she wasn't with him.

"You have no idea. Things have been so crazy." She sighed before getting up and wrapping herself in his strong embrace. Feeling nothing but sparks flow throughout her fatigued body.

"Hey what things? Come on, talk to me" He spoke a little too quickly before guiding her towards the grass that felt so cold against her jean covered leg.

As soon as he sat down he didn't waste any time in hugging his knees to his stone chest and wrapping his arm around her protectively and she shivered beneath his perfect body. She didn't know whether it was because of the cold or because she had Troy's arm around her. "Zeke called Sharpay today." With the comment he closed his eyes. As if he knew what was going to happen. "He um, he said to her that things were completely over and that if she saw him in the corridors at school not to talk to him. She was so devastated."

He pressed his thin lips to her hair comfortingly and looked her right in the eye, his azure penetrating through her own. "She'll come around."

Gabriella shook her head. "No I really don't think she will. She was totally devastated. What if we can't pull it all together? I don't think I can do it, Troy." She told him honestly.

Troy sighed deeply, in thought. And pulled her shivering body closer to his, immediately warming her. "Well, y'know what? I'm gonna be there and I know that you can do it."

How the hell did he know that? But as funny as it sounded, he made her feel like she could do it. Made her feel like she could face anything, as long as she had him. "You know that?"

He chuckled slightly before rubbing his hand up and down her arm. The sparks that were produced were causing her to shiver even more. "Fuck, yeah. And if I get to see you in hardly no clothes. Total bonus."

Damn him for being such a boy! She swatted her cold hand against his built chest. "Ow." He complained before she giggled sweetly.

"You're such a guy." She complained.

"I should hope so."He laughed. "But seriously, I have faith in you okay. And I know you can do it and deep down you know you can do it. So I don't want none of that I can't do it shit because you know you can."

There was many things that she loved about Troy Bolton, the way he kissed her, the way he held her gently to his body. The way he spoke to her with such kindness and decency, more so the way he looked at her. The love that bored through his irises was overpowering. But the one thing that she loved the most was Troy taking control. Troy telling her what to do. It was so sexy. And it caused a seductive smirk fall onto her features. "You think so?" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.

He looked down at her, the love pouring from his eyes; it made her fall in love with him all over again. "I know so." He gingerly leaned down and pressed a chaste kiss to her lips.

"Troy Bolton are you trying to seduce me?" She mustered in a sexy voice that she knew made him weak at the knees.

"Always." He whispered and before she had the chance to connect their lips together. "But we should get you home y'know."

She sighed deeply. "Way to kill the mood Bolton."

He laughed playfully while smirking at her suggestively. "Well we could continue this in the back seat of my car."

She laughed lightly. She loved Troy Bolton's hormones. "I'll hold you to that."

The weird thing about Troy was that, sometimes as of lately he was kind of distant around her like he was thinking about something. But like he was trying to muster up the courage to ask her something. But he never did. And it was beginning to drive her crazy.

"You don't have to." He pressed his lips to her tender neck. "But seriously come on I don't want you getting sick because of my horniness."

She smirked before feeling his arm unwrap from around her, she felt the lack of warmth and immediately shivers tingled up and down her spine. He extended his arm and he pulled her from her sitting position. Her body then moulded to his as he guided them towards the exit of park. He couldn't seem to contain himself though because his hand sneaked its way in her back pocket and was gripping at her butt every few seconds. They then came to a standstill and she forced her lips to his, unable to control herself any longer. As soon as their lips contacted his tongue pried her lips apart which she didn't object to at all.

She snaked her hands through his hair and began to pull on it gently. His hands fell on the curve of her hips and began to rub gently as if he was trying to produce warmth. But it was short lived, he must have forgotten where he was because his hands slowly snaked their way up her jacket and began to rub forcefully at her flat stomach. But the shivers just kept coming.

But she soon stopped in her tracks as she felt another presence near her. Another roaring engine was coming to a halt near her. But Troy didn't stop; his hands were still prying at her stomach. It wasn't until they both heard a cough that she actually stopped what she was doing.

"You having a nice time there Gabs?" Oh no. Her whole body had stopped working. She couldn't breathe. Her lungs were completely starved of oxygen. There her sister stood. Cheryl was wearing a bright pink coral cami and a pair of high wasted jeans. Her hair which was full of volume hung loosely on her tiny body.

"I uh uh..." Think of something to say you stupid girl! What the hell was she doing there anyways? Troy was practically stood 500 kilometres away from her. She could almost smell the fear that was radiating from his body. It was kind of amusing. "What the hell are you doing here?" She exclaimed.

Cheryl chuckled lightly. "I was on my way to the club to pick up your sister and I saw Troy's car so I thought oh I'll come and see if he's with Gabs and clearly...." She pointed out her hand to where they were making out mere minutes ago. Damn sisters always bursting her bubble! "You are with him."

Gabriella looked to Troy whose head was completely hung as if in shame. His chestnut bangs covered his face and he looked like he was twiddling his thumbs.

"So is this where you are when you say you're going out to clear your head. To the park to practically get down and dirty with your boyfriend." Gabriella wasn't even bothered that she had caught them, she had practically caught them at worse times. "You okay Troy?" At least someone was fucking amused by this!

"Um, yeah I'm fine. Great" His voice was so much higher which earned a small giggle from Gabriella. He was so sexy when he was shy. It made her just want to pull his pants down and let him take her there and then.

"Don't you think you should be taking my sister home lover boy?" Cheryl probed with the same amused smirk on her face. Damn her for making Troy embarrassed, which of course was turning Gabriella on. How weird was she?

"Um, yeah. I'll have her home in 10 minutes tops." He still hadn't hired his head from the ground.

"Okay. I'll see you later huh Gabs?" Gabriella nodded and held her hand up and wiggled her fingers as if to tell her sister she wasn't impressed with her. Not in the slightest. "Bye Troy."

It was the first time she had seen his face in around 3 minutes and it still managed to knock her off of her feet. "Seeya."

Gabriella didn't take her eyes from her sister until she saw her silver mini drive off down the road. "Fuck. I gotta get you home." His voice was so much higher than it usually was. His face had flashed crimson, gone beyond crimson.

"You don't have to be afraid of them y'know they love seeing you squirm. It makes you look sexy." Gabriella complimented before shrugging and going to grab the handle of the passenger car seat door.

"Does it now Miss Montez?" It seemed he still couldn't control his hormones when he was around her.

Little did she know it was all going to take a dramatic turn for the worst, somewhere in the near future.


	23. Falling To Pieces

**A/N: Before you all start reading I'd just like to point out that this chapter is really long! Longer than I've wrote so far in this story and everything is important soo.... Anyways it may get boring in places but just stick it out and read it all the way through. I worked really hard on it so I hope you can tell so pleaseee review and tell me what you think! And lastly I want to point out that I have got a new story up and I'd really appreciate it if you had a read of it and give me some feedback! And I hope you all had an amazing easter and didn't eat too much chocolate! **

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_"Molly, you're in danger.  
You can't just blurt it out like that! And quit moving around, because you're starting to make me dizzy. I'll just tell her in my own way."_

Sam Wheat + Oda Mae Brown: Ghost

* * *

Something was going to happen today.

He didn't know what, he didn't know who it was going to happen to but all he knew was that something was going to happen. He could always tell when something was going to happen. It was like a sixth sense that he had or something except that he couldn't talk to the dead. But he could always tell whenever something good or bad was going to happen. But the worst thing was about today, he didn't know whether it was a good thing or bad.

He had come to school early, really early. His dad had arranged a morning school work out, as they had a game coming up. And before game days, he dad did get pretty crazy. So all of the varsity basketball team were in the locker room trying to get themselves ready, awake and alarm for the workout.

But there was one person missing.

And that person just managed to stroll in 20 minutes late.

Zeke stood wearing a pair of sweats and a vest, it was fucking November! His face looked paler than what it normally did. The vest he was wearing had a few damp patches on it, but as soon as he got closer to Troy and Chad he was greeted by the scent of alcohol.

"Dude you stink" Chad said and held his hands out as if he was questioning Zeke rather than telling him that he stunk.

"Zeke have you been drinking?" Troy asked through narrow eyes. It was so unlike him.

Zeke laughed obnoxiously and then pulled on his vest as if he was looking at it more closely. "I went out last night."

Troy closed his eyes and cradled his head in one of his hands. "Guys get out on the court and we will be out soon." He motioned to Chad, Zeke and himself with his index finger.

There were echo's of footsteps as they all walked out of the locker room, silence coaxed over them.

"Dude, don't do this. I don't wanna hear this." Zeke dismissed as he turned his back to Troy and Chad and started to try and walk out.

"Well Zeke you're gonna have to hear it." Chad was rarely ever forceful, but Troy had to admit he was sick of it. The constant mood swings, and Troy knew that Sharpay was doing the same thing. God even as he just thought about her his stomach flipped.

"Dude. What are you doing?" Troy threw his arms out in affect of his annoyance. "This..." he moved his hand to point to Zeke. "This is fucked up what the hell is going on?"

Zeke laughed that Troy knew was fake. "I'm getting over her aren't I?"

It was as if Zeke had said it like it was what Troy wanted to hear. "Dude if Sharpay's what you then go get her"

Troy knew that Zeke was still in love with Sharpay, he could just see it in his purple slightly swollen tired eyes. It didn't take a genius to work it out. Everyone could see that he was broken. But what Troy didn't understand was why he wasn't doing something about it? It made Troy almost feel guilty for being happy with his girlfriend while Zeke looked tortured every time he saw him.

"I can't. I just can't" Zeke shrugged his built shoulders and looked down to the floor. He made his way over to the wooden bench situated in the middle of the room and sat down. "I love her so much."

Chad's sluggish eyebrows that were usually hidden by his afro narrowed in confusion. "Then Zeke.... I know you might not be the sharpest tool in the box but what the fuck are you doing then?"

Zeke shook his head but then exhaled deeply as if it hurt him to do so. "I don't know. She doesn't want a relationship does she?"

Troy flipped his chestnut bangs out of his eyes and then his face contorted into confusion. How the hell was he to know? But before he tried to open his mouth to say something he was cut off by Chad.

"How the fuck do you know if you don't ask her?" Chad's voice was passionate, he wasn't yelling but he just sounded annoyed. "Dude, you're both moping around. You're clearly in love with her but why call her and tell her to leave you alone if you don't wanna be with her? Zeke it's so fucked up!"

Zeke just lowered his head more, if it was even possible. "Zeke you need to be with her. She brings out the best in you man." Troy attempted to lighten the situation and put his hand on the front of Zeke's shoulder to calm him.

"What should I do then?" Zeke almost whispered as he looked up for the first time and close up Troy could really see how broken he was.

"Grow yourself some fucking balls and ask her out dude." Chad told him like it was obvious. "Now come on, Coach will flip a shit if we're not out there in a sec"

Troy shook his head and walked to his locker. "You guys go out, I'm just gonna give Gabi a call"

Chad laughed slightly and shook his head in disbelief at his best friend. "Dude you are so whipped."

Troy opened his gym locker and pulled out a towel from it and threw it at him. "Whatever, now fuck off out of here..." He ordered playfully.

The air suddenly became cold, like he could sense another persons presence there with him. But there was only him there wasn't there. Come on Bolton stop being such a pussy. He grabbed his phone and was about to dial Gabriella's number when he was cut off by a feminine voice.

"Hi Troy. Can we talk?" Her voice was quiet and hushed. He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was.

"No we can't fucking talk you shouldn't be here." He stated, anger was bubbling in the pit of his stomach. Why the fuck was Tara here anyways?

"I just wanted to talk." Her tone was almost laced with a tint of seduction. Seduction that made him feel sick to the bottom of his being. "How are things with Gabriella?"

Troy closed his eyes, and tried to breathe deeply to stop him from saying things to her that he'd regret. "Tara... just fuck off, seriously! What are you doing here anyways?" He attempted to drive the conversation, well conversation that he didn't want to be having away from Gabriella. As much as he loved her, and as much as he loved to talk to her. He didn't want to talk to Tara about his girlfriend.

"Like I said, I just wanted to talk." She walked farther into the locker room; she leaned up against the crimson lockers and lifted her foot up to stick her lower body out even more. "How are things with Gabriella?"

Troy gritted his teeth together and let a harsh breath escape through his teeth. "What the fuck do you want?"

Tara sighed in defeat and walked over to Troy as he stood with his back rested against his crimson locker. Most people would think that she was hot. But he didn't, he thought that she was repulsive. The short skirt barely covered her long legs and a cami that stuck to her petite body. And her hair was straightened down her body. "Remember when I told you about Gabriella who had another sister?"

Troy sighed. He still hadn't plucked up the courage to ask her about it. What if it hurt her? And also what if it wasn't true? Why should he believe a word that she was to say? "Whatever."

He began to walk out and brushed past her but he heard the echo of her footsteps on the floor as she grabbed his bicep. He had never felt so repulsed, it wasn't like when Gabriella touched him, he felt tingles all throughout his body but when she touched him. He never wanted her to touch him, ever again. He wasn't going to break up with Gabriella and run to Tara. Never. He was so in love with Gabriella he felt an ache in his heart.

"Here." She waved a piece of paper infront of his line of view. But he could only see the back of the paper. He wanted to grab the piece from her scrawny little hands and crumple it up, throw it into the corner of the room or maybe even set fire to it. Leave it forgotten. But curiosity was killing the anger; he gently reached out and grabbed the piece of paper, snatching it away from her mitts. The grin on her face was almost victorious.

His eyes narrowed in on the piece of paper, it was a newspaper article but one that had been printed out from the internet. A picture was situated in the left hand column. It showed a house, there was cautious yellow tape around the railings. The house was beautiful.

The garden had luscious green grass on it and small rocks centred all the way around the garden. There was a set of marble steps that lead up to the house, a double garage was on the left hand side attached to the house. White chunky pillars held the roof up. It was to die for. If Troy lived here he would be a happy man.

But then he looked at the headline.

Woman dies in local tragedy.

Police were called to a local house in the suburban area of San Francisco yesterday to enquire about the brutal murder of a young woman. The body has been identified as Emma Montez, 31. Forensic scientists say that Montez suffered from multiple stab wounds, one penetrating straight through the heart. Yesterday the police released a report which consisted of; "It was a ferocious break in that must have turned out wrong. It lead to the death of a young woman and the assault of a seventeen year old." The seventeen year old is now known as Gabriella Montez.

Police are still unsure what happened but there was n objects taken from the house, and they are still unsure of who could have commit such a heartless crime. The woman known as Emma was described as a "loving, kind, gentle woman who would do anything to help anyone", which came from a reliable source.

Neighbours of the house heard a commotion and raised voices around 7 PM but the police weren't actually contacted until 7:45 by another woman who was confirmed as Alyssa Green, who is lead to be believed as being a younger sibling of Montez, 31.

Montez, 31 was pronounced dead at the scene and was taken out of the house at around 8:15pm followed by the younger Montez being escorted out by paramedics and now is receiving hospital treatment. But it is reliable that she is in a stable condition and will be released to go home sometime in the next couple of days.

Police released another statement earlier on today, which was read by Green, 29 revealed, "We know that it is tragic what has happened and we can only hope that these monsters are caught and locked up, and never to be seen again. We would appreciate if press left our family and friends alone so we can grieve our beloved sister." Sources tell us that Green was heartbroken as she spoke to the press.

Police have no leads or suspects; the only thing they have to go on is that figures who were seen at the scene were dressed in black. Police also wish that anybody who may know anything or people connected to this tragedy to contact the crime tip line.

When he had finished reading he had to read over the lines about his 'girl' again. It couldn't be true. Did she make it up? Did she just think of it and write it down so she could cause trouble. No. Even that was cruel. It seemed to real. But wouldn't Gabriella have mentioned something? Even if she hadn't he could understand why. But his Gabriella was hurt, by some heartless bastards that murdered her sister.

He couldn't understand why she wouldn't have told him. He stared at the writing so hard until it all went blurred in his eyes. The piece of paper had gone loose in his hands as he let it fall to the floor, still staring down as if it was still there.

"Troy. I'm sorry..." He remembered that Tara was standing there, how could he forget? He almost hated her more. How dare she? How dare she tell him that Gabriella had another sister that was brutally murdered? She had just ruined his chances of Gabriella telling him herself. But what if she didn't trust him with such information?

"Get the fuck away from me" He growled and walked swiftly past her. The only question swirling around his brain:

What was he going to do now?

* * *

She had gotten ready for school, she had got all of her books ready and her homework was all done. She had eaten her breakfast. And she was just coming down the stairs as she had finished brushing her teeth.

"You going to school?" Alyssa asked her with one hand placed on the curve of her back supporting the unborn child's weight that she was carrying in her 7 and a half month pregnant belly. And the other resting on top of the bump. She was dressed in a pair of shorts and a cami that stuck tightly to her stomach, showing the bump off even more. Her bathrobe was secured around her shoulders and her long hair tied back loosely from her face.

"Uh-huh." She nodded before she saw her sisters face wince slightly. "Whoa, you okay?" She placed her hand onto her sister's arm as she nodded.

"Yeah totally fine, this little one just likes kicking mommy a little too much." Gabriella beamed brightly and felt her excitement rise. She couldn't wait for another baby in the family. Because she was only 14 when Lucas was born Alyssa hadn't really let her look after him as much so she was super excited for a new addition to the family.

"I can't wait." She placed her and out and gently rested it on the curve of Alyssa's stomach and she started to feel light tingles on her hand causing her to grin from ear to ear. "Right I'm gonna go."

She removed her hand from her unborn niece or nephew and started to walk away briskly to the front door, picking her bag up on the way.

"You want a ride home after school?" Alyssa offered but Gabriella shook her head quickly.

"Um, I'm gonna head over to Troy's after school. But thanks anyways" Alyssa walked closer to her and she pressed her lips to Gabriella's cheek.

"Use protection." Gabriella smiled bashfully and hit her sister lightly on the arm.

"Get away!" Gabriella laughed and went to grab the door handle.

As soon as she opened the door she felt all colour drain from her face. All loss of feeling drifted from her body. It was someone she had never anticipated to see again.

It was just a normal day. The weather was shining brightly. It was the beginning of summer and Gabriella couldn't have been happier. She had always hated winter anyways, the dark nights and cold weather depressed her to the extent to which she wanted to slit her wrists. So she was definitely happy that it was getting lighter on an evening and the sun was shining brightly onto her olive skin.

Gabriella smiled blissfully to herself as she lay quietly in the chair in the garden of their house with her sister. Emma was practically her best friend. Seeing as in she was the eldest of the Montez sisters she had looked after her since she was a baby and Gabriella had always seen her as a mother. After her grandmother died for sure. Emma was always there for her and always made her feel better. Even after her break up with Luke the previous week she had still been looking out for her.

"You know what kid?" Emma's feminine voice asked her. She had always called Gabriella 'kid' pretty much since she was born, as she was the baby of the family. Gabriella nodded her head and raised her eyebrows. "One day. And something tells me it's gonna be sometime soon, you're gonna find a guy who's gonna worship you. He'll practically kiss your feet y'know that right? And he's gonna be the best boyfriend you'll ever have. He'll be a keeper."

Yeah right. Gabriella would believe it when she saw it. She giggled her famous laugh and turned to face her sister, lifting the aviators from her face to see the eldest sister more clearly. "I think you've had too many cocktails."

Emma laughed a little. Her pale green eyes shone at Gabriella. Her pale green eyes had tints of piercing blue in them and also a little brown. Gabriella had always been jealous, her own eyes were so plain, boring and bland and she always envied the different shades that her sister had. Her body was sick thin but she also had curves, like the youngest Montez. Her skin was a shade lighter than Gabriella's; it was still tanned but just a tiny shade lighter. And much like Gabriella her hair was almost black and naturally curled. Some people had even mistaken the two for twins.

Which was stupid because Gabriella was only 17 right?

"No but seriously. Just trust me on this one." Her right eye fell down into a worthy wink which she always seemed to do. "Listen, um will you go upstairs and get my phonebook sweetie. It's in the attic..."

Gabriella nodded happily. "You coming inside now then?"

Emma sighed. "Yeah, we've got the whole summer to get a tan right?"

It was weird, with Gabriella and Emma seeing as in they was so many years that kept them apart, they still got on like a house on fire. They were also so alike that you would expect them to clash, but they didn't. They did the furthest thing from clash. "Definitely."

Gabriella walked with a spring in her step through the conservatory and through the living room, leading to the stairs which she followed. As she walked up the stairs she heard the familiar sound of the doorbell ringing. Her eyebrows furrowed. Who would be here? It was 6:30pm and nobody was due home until 7 at the earliest."You got it?" She called down the stairs. She heard distantly the sound of the old door opening.

"Yeah sweetie I can handle it." Gabriella shrugged it off and grabbed the phonebook in the dusty attic and quickly walked down the stairs.

It wasn't until she heard a scream that she actually stopped in her tracks. What was that? She then heard a thud. Her small body immediately grew scared, she physically couldn't move. This couldn't be happening. What was it? She began to move quietly but swiftly amongst the floorboards and she couldn't help but silently thank that they had got new laminate floor a few weeks ago to stop the constant creaking.

She edged her body closer to the banister and there she saw it.

Two hooded figures were stood together and she could see a pool of blood beginning to spread over the varnished wooden flooring. Tears of fear, despair, anger, all kinds of bad emotions started to flood down her face. Why wasn't she down there? What were they doing to her sister? They surely weren't doing anything good. But the worst thing was Gabriella couldn't see her. Her body reflexively shrunk to the floor and she hid herself behind the wooden pillars. Silently praying to God that they wouldn't see her. As far as Gabriella knew there was nobody that had hate towards their family, they got on relatively well with everyone.

What the fuck was going on?

There was suddenly another scream, the blood curdling scream was enough to pierce anyone's heart. And what was she doing? Sat fearing for her own life behind the banister. Her breathing was short and shallow and the acid tears were pouring down her face like a waterfall. She couldn't control it.

"What the hell do you want?" The fearful voice entered her ears the voice was filled with pain and it was quiet at the same time. As if she was gritting her teeth together to shield in more screams. Gabriella was frozen in her spot. She couldn't even hear her own breathing. She was scared that if she breathed any louder she would be dead.

There was no other option.

All of a sudden there was a huge crash followed by another piercing scream. She recognised the sound as glass shattering, the crash was so loud Gabriella's whole body was shaking. She didn't know whether it was from the loud crash or the fear inside of her. Gabriella gathered all of her inner strength and began to walk down the stairs as quietly as she could. She was biting her lip in fear of her life that they wouldn't hear her. Her footsteps were minute and the hooded figures were stood near the now shattered window.

In the distance Gabriella could hear mutters of words, deep voices. But she didn't know what they were saying. She had to do something. She had to get out, she had to call the cops, she had to do something.

Otherwise she would be dead.

There was one side of her body that wanted her to run out of the room, run out of her house and into the street where she would be at least safer than she was at that moment in time. She could run to the neighbours she could ask them to help she could do something.

But the other side of her body was rebelling against her. Telling her to go over to the two hooded figures and try and fight. Try and get away. It was like an adrenalin rush it was building, rising inside of her. The tears were still silently falling in fear.

She carried on tip toeing into the room where they were. She could see the remainders of the glass on the floor, from the shattered window. Where was she? Gabriella's breathing was coming short as she was panicking more. What could she do? She was 5'3 and 108 pounds. What kind of damage was she going to do?

Not a lot.

But she had to do something. Her life depended on it.

She had ordered her to go upstairs and that she could handle it but she couldn't could she.

As her body rounded towards the two people her heart practically gave way. It was violently crashing against the cage of her chest. Her breathing was shallow and she was trying her best to keep it quiet.

And then they turned around.

"Look what we have here" The deep booming voice questioned as Gabriella's eyes jumped from her head. She had never had to wonder what death would feel like but now it was staring her right in the face. Her heart was in her mouth. She couldn't breathe. She felt like all of her oxygen was being cut away from her. This was it. She wasn't going to wake up now. She knew it.

And the next thing she felt was a fist connecting with her temple. Her limbs gave out on her and her back violently connected with the floor.

That was the last thing she saw before black washed over her.

Gabriella hated that memory. Obviously you would hate it. It was the worst day of her life. The day she had lost her sister. The day she had killed her sister. She wasn't the one holding the knife but she may as well have killed her. What if she would have gone down the stairs sooner? What if she would have never had gone upstairs? Would things have turned out differently?

And there they were. The two so called 'detectives' that were supposed to catch the monsters that killed her sister. That robbed her of her best friend. Fire had replaced blood in her body and she could feel herself seeing red more with every second that went by.

Even though it was the worst day of her life there wasn't a day that went by where she didn't think about it. That fateful day. Gabriella blamed herself in many ways. When the hooded men turned to face her she could see their faces, but she didn't remember their faces. She had never been more frustrated when she could have potentially helped kill other people.

"Miss Montez we were wondering if we could speak with your sister?" Gabriella felt tears well up in her eyes. It was as if it was all coming back to her.

When Gabriella had awoken in the hospital and they had told her that her sister was dead, she couldn't bare it. And that was the reason why they had moved. In reality it hadn't even been a year since her sister died. It had been a little over 7 months. And the same day her sister died, Alyssa told her that she had planned to come home that day and reveal that she was pregnant.

"What are you doing here?" Gabriella asked, her tone was rude and obnoxious. But she didn't care.

"Like we said we were wondering if we could talk with your sister." The woman informed her calmly.

"ALYSSA!" Gabriella bellowed throughout the house, keeping her hand on the handle, so the two so called 'detectives' couldn't get in. How could they call themselves part of the police force? They hadn't done their jobs right.

"If you needed a ride all you had to do was...." Alyssa walked into the foyer where Gabriella was standing holding a mug of what Gabriella knew was caffeine free coffee. That was until she saw the two figures standing in the doorway. The mug she was holding slid from her grasp and crashed to the wooden floor, the contents spilling out. "Ask."

"Oh my god what is it I thought you had gone into premature labour or something" Cheryl chimed in as she walked in with a piece of toast in her mouth. "Fuck."

"Gabriella let them in." Alyssa instructed with the same blank look on her face that homed Gabriella's face. Gabriella turned around to send daggers in Alyssa's direction. Why the fuck should she have to let them in? "Gabriella" Alyssa scolded.

Gabriella sighed deeply and moved out of the way, before putting a fake beam onto her face. "Why come in, it's such a pleasure to have you in our home." She said in a cheery voice. Throughout the investigation Gabriella had been the harshest. It was like she had displaced all of her anger onto them.

The two 'cops' obliged to Gabriella's request and walked into the home. Gabriella almost immediately felt a disturbance in the home. Like they shouldn't be there. Like they were bringing the past back to haunt them.

"You moved. We had to track you down." The woman stated. Gabriella's face turned up in disgust.

"Yeah we moved because you couldn't do your fucking jobs and we were scared to even walk out of our own front door!" Gabriella exclaimed which earned a harsh look from both of her sisters who were there.

"Gabriella." They both said in unison.

"No it's okay." The detective dismissed Gabriella's rude disagreeable tone. "Where is your other sister? Phoebe?"

As if they couldn't even remember her name. Gabriella couldn't stand to be there for a second. She felt like she was going to chuck up the toast that she had eaten that morning.

"She's working." Cheryl stated bluntly. "Look I don't mean to be rude or anything but we just want to know why you're here?"

Gabriella didn't even want to know why they were there. She just wanted them gone, the air was contaminated.

"You might want to sit down." The male chimed in for the first time. His voice was more sympathetic as he looked at Gabriella, the tears must have been there because she could feel a lump the size of a melon at the back of her throat.

"I don't wanna sit down." Gabriella responded shaking her head lightly, she looked down to the floor and saw the contents of what was in Alyssa's cup was starting to dry onto the hardwood floor.

"We're okay standing." Cheryl responded in a more polite tone. It was as if Alyssa had lost her tongue. Alyssa had taken her sister's death hard. Well the whole family had but Alyssa had taken it harder than Cheryl and Phoebe had.

"Um okay. We thought we'd just let you know that yesterday morning, we had a confession to your sisters murder. By two guys. And they're being held in custody as we speak." The woman spoke confident and Gabriella felt like a weight had been lifted from her chest almost instantly.

"Oh my god." Gabriella whispered. Her black curls were shielding her from everyone else. For months she had been constantly afraid to walk out of the house instead they had come to get them. When there had been the suspected break in at their house, she was so hysterical because she thought that it was them. What if it was?

"So they just confessed?" Alyssa spat out almost venomously. "Just like that?"

The woman nodded confidently. "Yes Mrs. Green they just confessed."

Gabriella let out a few ragged breaths of anger. "I hope you fucking lock them up and throw away the key." She never used bad language infront of her family. But she didn't care.

She ran away and up the stairs and threw herself onto her bed, and started sobbing instantly. There were so many emotions running through her brain. She was happy that they had caught the monsters that had robbed her of her best friend. She also felt like she had seen a ghost, her bottom lip was quivering, she felt like she had been revisited by all of the emotions that had hit her on that fateful day. But most of all she felt a need.

A need to be with him.


	24. Sing For Me

_"I'm Not In Control. So Let Me Go"  
_Agnes; Release me

* * *

Just a typical Friday. She should have been excited for that night. But she wasn't.

She couldn't even bring herself to eat anything. Her fork danced across the white plate and her stomach felt revolted at the thought of eating anything. It was the day after Gabriella had found out that the bastards that had killed her sister were put behind bars; she would have thought she would have been happy? But she wasn't. She was far from happy. Her own mood matched the skinny blonde that was sitting next to her.

"You okay beautiful?" Troy was sitting on the left of her, his legs were parted separated by the crimson seat and his body was facing Gabriella's as hers was sideways. She had barely slept that night. Infact she hadn't slept a wink, the whole scene of her sister's death was replaying, like a song that you just couldn't get enough of on repeat. She hadn't been majorly hurt physically that day. She had only been inflicted with a black swollen eye and she had a small lump on the back of her head where she had connected with the hardwood floor.

Gabriella nodded distantly. It was as if Troy knew what was wrong with her. Which was barbaric wasn't it because she hadn't even told him. She wanted to though, a voice deep down inside of her wanted to act on her emotions and her instincts and tell him. But one part was holding her back, telling her it wasn't time that she wasn't ready. Which one was she to believe? "I'm just tired." Technically that wasn't a lie was it? She was tired, she hadn't had any sleep. She was unbelievably exhausted.

"You're excited for tonight though right?" He whispered into her ear. This was one of the many things she loved about him, even if they were in a group of people and they were all talking with one another he would make his own little conversation with her.

"Meh" She groaned shaking her head lightly and finally giving up in trying to win the fight inside of her to eat the sandwich on her plate. "A little. You're still coming though right?" She added the last bit panicked.

Troy chuckled lightly and pressed his lips to her temple sending warmth immediately through her body. "I'll be there, cheering you on."

Gabriella gave him a half hearted smile before turning to stare at him fully. His azure spheres bored into hers with concern and a swell of love looking down onto her. "Thanks. It means everything to me that you'll be there."

Troy almost frowned at how deep she was being. But she wanted him to know! It seemed like everything had come back to haunt her and it just made her appreciate him more. It made her want to be with him more. "You sure everything's okay?" He asked almost hesitantly.

Now it was Gabriella's turn to frown. "Yeah, why wouldn't it be?"

His defined shoulders shrugged lightly before he pressed his lips to her temple again. "I just want to make sure you're okay."

Gabriella smiled sweetly, a closed mouth smile as if it would exhaust her too much to open her mouth fully. "I'm fine Troy." Okay that was a total lie. She wasn't okay, far from it actually. Not only had she literally seen death, well it had come back to haunt her in the past 24 hours, she couldn't bring herself to close her eyes incase she saw the horrific image of her sisters cold lifeless body on the floor and she did nothing to stop it! Nothing! And she had to try to pull herself together for that night, not only for herself but for her three best friends. And even Sharpay was seeming to be getting into the hang of things.

Gabriella never thought she would feel like this again. In rehearsals this morning for their performance that night she had barely been alive. She hadn't performed to the best of her ability. But she hoped that would all change for that night. Because as soon as she stepped onto the stage all she would do was look for Troy in the audience and the rest of them would just fade away. He would be the only person she would want to see. "Love you." He whispered huskily into her ear.

She loved the reassurance of his love for her. She smiled tightly. "Love you too. You're still coming over after the performance tonight right?"

Troy's chestnut eyebrows rose suggestively a few times before his right eye fell into a wink. "You're sisters not around?"

She smirked seductively. "Nah-uh." She shook her head and felt her long black curls tickle her chest.

"You sure because they always seem to walk in at the wrong time. I think they must think I'm a horny tom cat or something..." Gabriella giggled at Troy's attempt at a metaphor.

"Okay one, they love to embarrass me. Two, the horniness... which I love by the way not complaining and three I don't like cats." She whispered the last part before turning her body and pushing her lips up to his, he breathed into the kiss and smirked at the same time.

When she pulled away he leaned in again just so she was within kissing range. "I'm definitely coming over tonight then..." He smirked his cocky smile against her lips.

Gabriella didn't waste no time in pressing a teasing kiss to his lips and swiftly moving away.

"Yo hoops. You seen Zeke?" Chad called to her boyfriend with his orange basketball cradled in his hands. The name seemed to bring Sharpay out of her trance and then realization must have dawned on her that she hadn't dreamt the whole thing. And she just focused straight on into the distance.

Troy shook his angelic head before sweeping the stray bangs from his vision. "No man, he was with Jason before lunch but I don't know where he went."

"EXCUSE ME EVERYONE!" A deep booming voice was enough for Gabriella jump from her skin. "UM EXCUSE ME!"

Gabriella narrowed her eyebrows and turned around swinging one leg over the crimson seat and she shuffled back into Troy's built frame to take him in. His strong arm wrapped around her stomach and started to rub slightly. Gabriella turned around to see Zeke standing on top of a table, he looked like he had seen a ghost, and clearly public speaking wasn't one of his biggies. Cradled in his hand he saw a bunch of roses. But Sharpay hadn't even flinched.

"EXCUSE ME!" He bellowed for a third time. Gabriella took the opportunity to lean over and nudge Sharpay slightly, bringing her out from her trance like state. Gabriella pointed around to where Zeke was standing and Sharpay's hazy eyes enlarged, and secondly blinked a few times as if she thought she was hallucinating.

"Zeke what are you doing?" Her eyes were enlarged, but the warmth seemed to be back there, opposed to the freezing cold that was there. Her lips barely moved as she spoke. "Do you want to humiliate me infront of everyone?"

Zeke bent down and whispered close enough to Sharpay who was now standing."Just sssh for a second. I'm trying my best here"

An amused smirk crept its way onto Sharpay's pale face. She folded her arms and swayed her hand carelessly as if to tell him to go on.

"Okay. Okay." He muttered, and his feet started to lightly tap on the bench. "YOU'RE STUBBORN. AND YOU SPEAK YOUR MIND AND YOU EAT SO MANY COOKIES THAT YOU SHOULD BE 1000 POUNDS. YOU'RE AWKWARD AND SO FUSSY."

Sharpay was laughing lightly at Zeke's insults. "Keep em coming."

At this point Zeke jumped down so he was on her level. "BUT ON TOP OF ALL THAT, YOU'RE SWEET, YOU'RE KIND, YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL AND YOU SCRUNCH YOUR NOSE UP WHEN YOU'RE CONFUSED. PRETTY MUCH LIKE YOU'RE DOING NOW. AND.... AND..... I GUESS. I GUESS I WANT YOU! I WANT YOU TO BE MINE ALL MINE OFFICIALLY. AND IF YOU TURN ME DOWN NOW INFRONT OF EVERYONE ELSE I'LL CUT YOUR HEAD OFF!"

There was echo's of laughter from all the way around the cafeteria. Sharpay bit down on her lip and bobbed her head from side to side, as if she was keeping him on his toes. "YES!" She shrieked and launched her small body into Zeke's awaiting arms.

Hands smacked together and claps were heard from every direction. Gabriella turned around to Troy. "Awe"

Troy smiled brightly and kissed the tip of her nose causing her to shiver.

"I'd love to be your girlfriend." Sharpay beamed brightly, the look of happiness on her face was priceless.

Zeke released her from his grasp and she stood down, his smooth almost black eyes stared down at Sharpay with rounds of love being emitted from them. He handed the red roses that were rested behind him to Sharpay, and she laughed loudly. "See I would've preferred cookies."

Zeke smiled brightly. "See what I mean about the fussiness" He stated the open question to the rest of the group. The same silly smile happened to be plastered across all of their faces.

"I'm totally kidding." She beamed enthusiastically and kissed him. The kiss was passionate and Gabriella couldn't help but watch. Okay, pervert stop watching.

Gabriella suddenly didn't feel so afraid anymore.

He had never been so proud of her.

Even though pain had shone in her stunning chocolate eyes, she had still pulled it together and put on the performance of her life. So he thought.

She had looked absolutely stunning. Her long black hair was in ringlet curls making her face look so much more rounded. There wasn't much make up present on her face, not like she needed it anyways but she still looked like an angel. Next to her right eye there was pink diamante's in the form of a pattern on her face. The gold dress that she had worn, turned him on and he had just been looking at it. It was a champagne coloured dress, and it cut into a V on her chest so Troy could see the perfect amount of cleavage. The silver straps went around the back of her shoulders and left the rest of the dress backless. There were diamantes and jewels glued onto it all the way around the back, and on the front. It made her look like a goddess.

Throughout the full song she had kept her eyes glued on him and he had just looked at her, nobody else just her. He had looked at her with hunger locked into his azure spheres. And if there was any other guy looking at her like that, then he definitely had a problem.

Even though her body had been rigid, her dancing had been flawless. Call him biased but she was definitely the best one out there. And as she pushed her body out all of the gems on the dress bounced from the material, flowing as she danced.

And now he was standing waiting for her with Chad and Zeke.

He was nervous though. He knew something had been up with her the whole day, and tonight he was about to know what it was. He wanted to ask her about her sister, whether it was true or whether it wasn't.

"Dude did you see the whole thing when they put their hands on their back and like thrusted or some shit. Fuck it was..." Chad trailed off thinking of the words to say but a growl just spread through his closed lips.

"I was there..." Zeke stated holding his hand out. "Where the fuck are they I really wanna go if you know what I mean"

"Tsk..." Troy whispered but he couldn't help but get thoughts into his mind of when he and Gabriella would get to her house. God, he wanted her. "You're disgusting."

Chad playfully tapped his hand to Troy's shoulder. "Dude, don't tell me you haven't thought of Gabriella like that..."

Troy turned to him, his eyes enlarged. What the hell was he talking about? Of course he had! "Chad..."

Chad held his hands up defensively and shook his head. "I'm just saying man. She's hot. Really hot..."

Troy was about to open his mouth but he was cut off by a feminine voice.

"Who's hot?" Taylor breathed as they came into view. Gabriella was lagging behind carrying a bag. She looked exhausted. She was wearing white sweats and a white zip up jacket with a black cami underneath it. The hood on the jacket was up as she looked down to the floor.

"You!" Chad stated almost a little too quickly earning a sceptical look from his girlfriend. "Only you baby." He walked towards her and kissed her on the cheek.

"Yeah sure." Taylor announced through a laugh.

Gabriella walked closer towards him and dropped the bag that she was carrying onto the floor and rested her body against his. Her arms were folded against her chest and the hood on her jacket was resting against his chest. He took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her lower back and hold them there securely. "I'm so proud of you."

Gabriella smiled tiredly and looked up into his eyes. "You liked it?"

Troy grinned down at her before kissing her forehead. "I loved it. Come on let's get you home."

Gabriella's mouth was ferociously pressed up against his. Her hands were roaming beneath the t shirt he was wearing as she straddled him in a sitting position. The jacket that she had been wearing was lying discarded somewhere on the floor. His hands were looped around her petite back and they were linked there together. Troy broke away from her lips momentarily. "You looked gorgeous up there you know that right?"

Gabriella looked down at him breathlessly. "You think so?"

Troy nodded his head. "I know so."

She sighed deeply and pecked her lips to his. "You want something to eat or drink?"

He shook his angelic head. "Nah I'm fine..."

Gabriella still stayed stationed in the same position but moved her arms so they were snaked around his neck and she started to play with the small hairs. "What are you thinking about?" She asked referring to how Troy had been quite distant with her. Not to the extent where he was cold with her, she could tell by the sharp poke in her butt that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. But it was like he was just thinking about something. Something she wanted to know about.

"Just shit I guess." Troy whispered, she moved her head to the side so she could stare at him more intently.

"I thought I was gonna die while I was on the stage..." She attempted to change the subject. She had never been so nervous. She nearly had another panic attack. Taylor had offered to go and get Troy but she knew she wouldn't have gone out there if she would have gone to get him. There was something about being in his arms that was so calming to her. She felt numbed when he had his arms around her, the love that swelled from him to her overpowered every other feeling she had inside of her.

"You looked pretty at home to me..." He whispered encouragingly to her.

Her fingers started to dance up his biceps and she could have sworn she felt him shiver from beneath her. "No seriously, all the lights and everybody's eyes on me. I just looked at you the whole time..." What the hell was she doing? She had to tell him! Just tell him you stupid, stupid girl!

"I noticed." He stated and started to rub soothing circles onto the bottom of her back. "You changed you're bracelet."

Troy motioned to the charm bracelet. She had changed one of the charms that morning to one that Emma had given her for her 17th birthday, before she had died. After she died she had taken it off and put it in a box that she hadn't opened. But that day, she had decided it was a time to put it on. "Yeah, it's nice to have a change sometimes."

Troy gingerly reached down to the bracelet and cradled the small charm in his hand. It was a tiny snowflake. Gabriella had always loved the snow ever since she was a child and in San Francisco there was never any snow and Emma had bought her that charm. It was a boring story, yeah she knew but it was one of the last gifts she got from her sister so she was bound to. She didn't even realise that her eyes were glossing over with tears. "Hey what is it?"

It was then she realised. She couldn't tell him. What if he thought she was a total freak for saying she saw her sister murdered infront of her? And then broke up with her! She couldn't let that happen. "Nothing. I'm okay."

His index finger pushed up on her chin to force her to look into the stunning azure pools. "You can tell me you know."

Gabriella sniffled slightly. "I know. I love you, you know that right?"

Troy nodded, love filling the whole room. "I know. I love you too. You're everything to me."

Troy leaned over with her body still cradled in his and pressed their lips together. It wasn't one filled with hunger like their previous one. It was sensual and romantic. He squeezed her bottom lip between his, and he knew that drove her crazy. She felt shivers course all the way through her small body. Gabriella pushed her groin down dangerously against Troy's. She heard Troy's breathing become hitched against her lips and she knew that she was driving him crazy. He detached their lips and started to kiss and suck on her neck. "You're too gorgeous..."

Gabriella chuckled lightly, but guilt was still eating away at her small stomach. She couldn't tell him though could she? She just couldn't. It wasn't an option. "You flatter me too much." She chuckled but it was more of a whisper as she was more focused on the feelings Troy was evoking upon her.

"Not at all..." He paused, for a second causing Gabriella to whimper in disappointment. But then he continued working at the spot on her neck. She knew there was going to be a hickey there, but it didn't matter. It meant she could think of him even when he wasn't there.

"Troy..." She moaned and tried to arch her back but she felt his lips slip from the spot on her neck.

But all time came to a halt when the front doorbell rung. Gabriella frowned slightly. "Leave it..." Troy murmured against her neck.

Gabriella switched her head to the side to look through the archway but of course she couldn't see the door. "What if it's my sisters?" She whispered bluntly. Troy immediately seized from his actions and picked her up and rested her on the floor.

"Then you should get it. You should definitely get it." Gabriella giggled at how scared Troy was of her family. It was hilarious.

"I'll be right back." She pressed her lips to his swiftly and began to walk away.

She walked to the front mahogany door and saw a masculine shadow stood in the doorway. She slowly opened the door...

All time skidded to a halt. Her eyes enlarged so far out of her spherical head that she thought they had fallen out onto the floor. This couldn't be happening. Her insides churned like they were in a blender. She felt like sinking to the floor and begging for it all to go away.

"Hello Gabriella...."

* * *

**A/N: Ahh cliffy I know. I just thought I'd slip it in because I haven't done one for a while. Hopefully you'll be happy with certain parts of this chapter? And I know it was abit HSM3 inspired but oh well! So review and let me know what you think! Also, I was just wondering what you would all prefer, if I updated this story next or Let The Best Man Win, as I haven't updated that in a while, but either will be updated within the next two days? It's up to you guys, I'm happy either way! **

**Also I thought I'd put a little preview on. So hopefully you won't mind! **

_"What so you think that now it's all gonna be okay? Because I can assure you it sure as fucking hell isn't"_

_..._

_"Troy can you leave us? We need to talk alone.." _

_..._

_"Troy. It's Phoebe. I think you should come to the hospital right away."_

_..._

_"She's in a critical condition. But the team and I are doing all we can" _


	25. Hope

**A/N: Before you start reading I'd just like to apologize for the delayed update on this! I've had some personal stuff going on with my boyfriend and it's resulted in a weekend of eating ice cream and watching The Notebook on repeat for the past what 4 days? I watched it for the first time on Thursday and instantly fell in love with it so it's been the answer to all of my problems this weekend! So on that front I'm really sorry. And secondly I'd just like to say there are so many emotions going on in this chapter and originally I was going to do this chapter as 2 separate ones. So hopefully you won't mind that I merged them both together! But I also want to apologize if it's abit iffy in parts, I started this before I got caught up in boys *ugh* lol! So if the ending starts to suck then again I'm sorry. Anyways thanks for reading and let me know what you think. But I'd like to point out that this isn't the end yet! And also would you all like it if I started to put a preview on the bottom of each chapter? Yay? Nay? Let me know :) Thanks for reading and reviewing. **

* * *

_"When they ask me what I liked best, I'll say it was you."_

Maggie Rice. City of Angels

* * *

All blood flow had been restricted from her legs, she felt like she had to cower to the ground just to save her from passing out. She couldn't breathe. Her lungs were practically nonexistent at that moment in time. Tears had welded in her spheres. Her body was numb. She had dreamt of this moment and what it would be like for so long, how she would feel and how she would imagine it to be. But it was the exact opposite. She thought she would be happy, and that she would let the dick in she would greet him with open arms. But she couldn't. She had never felt so much hate and anger towards one person.

"Are you going to let me in?"She thought she hadn't remembered what he had looked like, but all of the images had come circling back. He was tall, his face was rounded. His olive skin mirrored hers. His hair was jet black, although there were tones of grey hidden in there now. His face was quite old, it was wise. He had big brown eyes like she did. But she never wanted to look like this man. She hated that man.

That man was her father.

"I...I...." She whispered, her hand was still held securely onto the door. She couldn't find her tongue. It was lost somewhere.

"Gabi? Gabi?" And then she remembered the love of her life who was sitting in the room. She never wanted him to see this man.

She was so confused. What was she going to do? Her mouth was quivering; tears were falling rapidly from her eyes. But it was until then she felt a small hand on the curve of her back. "Hey... what is it? Who's this?" He gestured towards her father who was still standing in the doorway.

Gabriella shook her head. Why couldn't she talk? Just move your mouth. Just fucking do it you silly girl! "I think I should be asking you that, son..."

She managed to find her strength but it didn't take her very far. She threw her body onto Troy's and she could barely feel his hand on her back, cradling her. "Its okay" He whispered into her ear. "I don't know who you are but I think you should leave..."

Gabriella couldn't hear them talk. She couldn't even hear her own breath. But she needed answers. She wanted answers. She turned around to look at him. "No..." It was the first thing she had said, but it came out as a whisper. "Troy this is my father..." She managed to croak out in a sob.

"Hi Gabriella..."Gabriella walked stiffly and numbly into the living room, and she couldn't hear the echo of footsteps behind her. She stood still in the centre of the room. It all started to spin. It was too much. Emma's death coming back to get her and then her father showing up. After 14 years? What the hell did he expect? A welcome home party?

"What do you want?" Her voice was raspy. She was practically speechless. No scratch the practically, she actually was speechless.

"I wanted to see my daughters." He shrugged. Like it was nothing! What was he actually on? Had he been drinking? "Where are your sisters?"

Where it came from she didn't know. She was on the verge of hysterical she knew that. Her hand was up holding her head, brushing against her black curls. She almost forgot that Troy was standing in the same room. "No. Don't you dare! You're not gonna go anywhere near them."

He wasn't showing any emotion. No remorse. It was as if he was happy? No that couldn't be true. "Gabriella. They're my daughters, you're my daughter"

Her breathe was coming in spasms. She threw her rigid body in any sight for an exit she could run out of. "WHAT? WHAT DID YOU THINK YOU WOULD ACHIEVE? YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO CALL ME YOUR DAUGHTER!"

She didn't even know that Troy was stood behind her until he laid a hand on her, she flinched into his touch but melted soon after, and she turned in his embrace and let him hold her to his body. "Is this your boyfriend Gabriella?"

Gabriella turned around quickly, the makeup that she was wearing had smudged with the salty tears that were streaming down her face. "Don't you dare! You think that you can just show up after 14 years and walk right through the fucking door?"

She knew she shouldn't have been using that language towards him, but she couldn't help it. She hated him. Actually hated him. 14 years of anger was crashing down upon her. "Gabriella. I'm your father..."

She scrunched her nose up in disgust. "You weren't a father. You never will be my father."

He shook his head angrily. How could he ever get angry with her? She was completely right, wasn't she? "Gabriella don't do this."

Gabriella laughed a manic laugh. She didn't even recognise it. "I'LL TELL YOU WHAT YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE! YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE WALKED OUT OF THE DOOR JUST BECAUSE THINGS GOT TOUGH. HOW'S THAT FAIR?"

Her voice wasn't one she recognised either, she was screaming. She was on the borderline of hysterical. But she didn't care. She wouldn't stop until her father realised how much he had hurt her. "You wanna talk about fair?" He asked amusedly. How dare he laugh! How dare he! "IT'S NOT FAIR WHEN YOU DON'T GET A CALL TO SAY YOU'RE DAUGHTERS DEAD!"

Gabriella's eyes enlarged. To the point where they weren't returning again. "DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT HER!" It was then that she realised that Troy was standing there, watching the whole scene unfold. And she hadn't even told him about Emma. She didn't want him to find out whilst she was screaming at her so called father. "Troy can you leave us? We need to talk alone."

Troy seemed to be thinking as he sighed deeply. She was a terrible girlfriend. She was being unfair to him wasn't she? But she had to do this. She just had to! He looked at her pleading coffee eyes and suddenly seemed to melt. He nodded silently and put his arms around her. "I'm just a call away you know that right?" He whispered into her ear lobe. She didn't notice the stern look that Troy was giving her father.

She pulled away reluctantly from his warm embrace and nodded. "Love you." She whispered.

He smiled slightly and kissed her on the forehead. "Call me."

And with that he walked out of the house. Not before sending a round of daggers towards her father. She didn't care. It was what he deserved. As soon as Gabriella heard the door shut, all of the love that Troy was sending her disappeared and all the hate that she was directing at her father was filling the room.

She didn't know where it came from, she swiftly walked over to him and swung her arm back and connected the palm of her hand with his cheek, causing a loud clapping sound. His head fell to the side and his mouth fell wide as if he was shocked. Why the fuck wouldn't you be shocked? "Gabriella..."

She shook her head venomously and bit down on her lip to curb the tears that were threatening to fall. She wanted to be strong. She had to be. "You can't be here. It's been 14 years! How did you find us?" All of the questions that she had were coming out, like word vomit. She didn't want to ask them. But she did.

"I have a friend that works in the police. He told me where you lived around 3 months ago" He shrugged like it was nothing. Police. Yeah. Seems like they all never did their jobs.

Gabriella just nodded. She didn't know what to say. She was disgusted. She couldn't think of words to say to him. "And you just show up now?"

He almost winced at Gabriella's words. She was panicked, she was confused. It was a range of emotions on her small frame. "No. I um, I was here around 2 months ago."

Then it dawned on her, 2 months ago someone was in the house. "It was you." She spoke accusingly. "You... you, you broke into the house?" She pointed her index finger towards him.

"I didn't break in...." He winced. Gabriella's eyes jumped from their sockets. She wanted to kill him. He couldn't be here. She couldn't have him here.

"What you just thought you'd open the door and see if we were home? I was petrified that night. I had a panic attack and all because you what were thinking oh I'll see how my daughters are doing after fourteen fucking years?" He had broken into their house. She couldn't, and wouldn't have that. She had been so afraid, she thought it was the people who had murdered Emma coming back for her. And it was him. Her father. Why would he do that? No more importantly how could he do that? To his own daughters.

"Gabriella?" He called her name. For so many years she had wanted him there, wanted him to come back and it would all be okay, of course she was young she was naive. She just thought that daddy had gone away. But now, she had never felt so much hate towards one person. "Do you ever miss me?"

She laughed slightly. Manically. "You lost your right to ask me that question when you walked out of the door and out of our lives." Tear's fell unwillingly from her eyes again.

"Gabriella I never wanted to hurt you." He said solemnly.

"I used to think I'd done something wrong y'know. I used to think that I'd done something to make you leave. I used to sit on the window ledge, and watch for you like you were gonna come back..." Her voice cracked as she spoke. But she was going to be strong. She had to.

"It was hard..." His eyes darted to the ground, avoiding her waiting chocolate eyes.

"I'll tell you what was hard! When grams stepped in to take care of us and then she died! Of a heart attack. And then seeing your own sister get murdered infront of your face. And her father not even turning up to her funeral. But you know what?" She asked rhetorically. "I'm glad you weren't there. She hated you. She really despised you."

He looked a bit taken back by Gabriella's actions. But he shouldn't. She never actually thought she could hate one person that much. "I didn't know...."

"IT WAS ALL OVER THE NEWSPAPER! HOW COULD YOU NOT KNOW?" She screamed, her body was shaking from anger.

"I didn't wanna bother you." He was trying to justify himself to her. But she didn't want him. She didn't want his sympathy.

"So you wanna bother us now?" Gabriella held out her hand to question him.

"I just wanna be part of your lives..."He spoke slowly, as if it was going to influence her more.

"What so you think that now it's all gonna be okay? Because I can assure you it sure as fucking hell isn't." Her body was shaking, she couldn't handle all of the stress, the as if it was all on cue, there was a familiar ringing that echoed through the house. Gabriella swiftly walked past her father and picked up the phone and held it to her ear. "What?" She spat venomously.

"_Gabriella, honey. You need to get to the hospital right away. It's Alyssa..." _No. It couldn't happen. Not again. She wouldn't let it happen.

"What? What's happened?" All colours had drained from her face and her legs had turned to jelly. She physically couldn't support herself.

"_Calm down. It's okay. She's just gone into labour. Call a cab okay?" _Phoebe's voice coaxed. Gabriella nodded her head, even though she knew she couldn't see her.

"I'll call one now. I'll see you soon..." And with that Gabriella pressed the button on the phone and pressed it down into its pod. "You have to leave..."

She shakily walked around to pick her jacket up from the floor. "What? Who was that? Why won't you tell me what's going on?"

"I have to go. You... you, you need to leave..." Her legs were shaky, she felt like falling to the ground and letting everything eat her insides apart. It was at that minute she regretted ever sending Troy home. She needed him. She needed his support and she needed him to tell her everything was going to be okay. "GO NOW!"

She knew they knew something was wrong. But she couldn't bring herself to say it. Deep down she had hoped they thought it was just the fact her sister was in labour. But she was almost 6 weeks early. How could she be happy about that?

"Gabi sweetie sit down. You're driving me crazy" Cheryl lazily commented. When Alyssa had been in labour before she had been at it for over 46 hours and it was a long 46 hours, and Gabriella only hoped that it wouldn't be that long this time. Otherwise she would be risking her father finding them. Him finding them again.

She couldn't believe it. She had actually taken the time to think about it and she was still stunned. After 14 years. What were the odds? Why was he here? In her life? "Sorry." She plumped herself down into the chair. Her body slouched in the shape of the chair.

"I'm gonna go get some soda's anyone want one?" Phoebe spoke kindly. Gabriella and Cheryl both shook their heads.

"No thanks, I'm good." Gabriella replied, showing her gratitude with a smile. She arched her hair back over the edge of the chair in frustration. What should she do? Should she tell them about her father? She didn't want to bring any more stress on anyone.

"Okay little miss Montez what's wrong? And don't give me any of that nothing I'm fine bullshit, spill." Ugh. Damn them for knowing when there was something wrong with her.

"It's noth..." She started but Cheryl held up a hand to silence her.

"I told you, no nothing bullshit." Her head shook as she spoke; her deep brown spheres were shining with desperation. Desperation for Gabriella to tell her.

What else could she do?

"Okay. This goes no further you hear me?" Gabriella turned to her side, to look at her sister more intently. The seriousness was locked into Gabriella's voice. And it was at that point she knew she had to tell him. Cheryl nodded her head vertically. Gabriella looked down to her white sweatpants covered lap and started to twiddle with her thumbs. "I saw dad." Gabriella revealed in the smallest tone imaginable.

"What?" Cheryl asked, she blinked a few times. Gabriella turned to see her and the normal rosy colour of her cheeks had been replaced by a shade of deathly white.

"I saw dad. He came to our house." Gabriella replied in a louder tone. The weight of the burden she had been carrying from his visit was taking its toll on her.

"Are you serious?" Cheryl asked and her hand rested on her lips in pure shock.

Gabriella sighed annoyingly. "No I thought I'd make it up for a joke. Of course I'm serious."

Cheryl rose from her seat promptly and started to pace across the small waiting room. Like Gabriella was a moment ago. "Oh my, shit. Are you.... oh my god" The words were leaving her mouth quickly. Her face was the same colour as freshly fallen snow. "So he just showed up? After fourteen years?" She was speaking quickly, and Gabriella knew that the pain was evident, obviously Cheryl had had a longer amount of time with her father, so she was in a greater amount of pain when he left. Gabriella had always thought of herself as lucky in that sense, because she had only been so young when her father had left she hadn't remembered her time with him as much as her other sisters had. "After fourteen years and he just fucking shows up? What did you say to him?"

She knew she shouldn't have done it. She had clearly caused her sister pain. "He knocked on the door, I answered I asked him what he wanted, then I got the call and then he left." Gabriella listed the night's events.

"Did he say why he was here?" Gabriella sensed the panic in her voice. Well she had panicked. She had gone past panicked; now she was just confused.

"He said he wanted to be a part of our lives?" Cheryl asked but Gabriella didn't know whether it was a rhetorical question or not so she just nodded solemnly. "How fucking dare he?"

Gabriella's dark eyebrows rose in agreement. She didn't know what to say to her. Should she let her just go on with her rant? "Cheryl, I know you might want to but I don't want to say anything to Phoebe or Alyssa for that matter. I don't wanna stress her out while she's in labour."

Cheryl nodded, although her whole slim body looked to be quivering. She was staring into the distance as salty tears released themselves from their prisons and they ran down her face. "Agreed." She sighed as she sat down in the armchair.

Before she knew it Phoebe had returned to the room with Lucas, as they obviously had no one to look after him and Dan was with Alyssa. Gabriella groaned in the uncomfortable chair. "I need Troy."

Cheryl looked around at her. "Do you want me to call him?"

Gabriella shook her head. "Nah, he's had a tough day, I don't wanna bother him." What she really meant was _"he met my father like I basically did for the first day today, and I don't really know how he will have taken it." _

Phoebe looked at Gabriella suspiciously which went unnoticed by her. "I'll be back in a minute."

The whole night's events had been replaying in his mind, like a song on repeat. It had been a slightly good day, obviously because Zeke and Sharpay had gotten back together. But he had detected there was something wrong with Gabriella, every hour that had passed. But the only question that was going through his mind was

Why hadn't he done something about it?

But that was silly right? Even if he would have done something her father would have still been there wouldn't he? Troy had thought he had seen Gabriella scared, but that look on her face when she had opened the door to her father had been enough to break his heart. She looked stunned, but petrified at the same time. And he also thought he had seen people looking the direct image of their parents but if you put a wig on Gabriella's father, it would be Gabriella.

He had tried to call her. But he didn't want to crowd her, if she was with her father he definitely didn't want to crowd her. Troy was lucky that he had two parents, that provided unconditional love for him. But what about Gabriella? She had neither, her mother had died and her father had left, what unconditional parental love had she had? Of course she had her sisters but he couldn't help but wonder if she would ever long for a proper family? The mother, father and children. Maybe she did, maybe she didn't?

But he needed to see her. Needed to be with her. He wanted to tell her that it didn't matter about her sister's death or it didn't matter that she had never had a father. He needed to be with her. To bring him from his trance he heard a light tapping on his bedroom door, followed by the sound of the door opening.

"Troy honey?" His mothers soothing voice entered his ears. "There's a call for you." And with that Lucille crossed the threshold of the door and handed him the phone.

"Hello?" His voice was quiet, almost a whisper.

"Troy. It's Phoebe. I think you should come to the hospital right away." Phoebe stated to him. Panic rose in his body. Gabriella? What was it? He couldn't bring himself to talk. What if he had left her alone and her father had done something? What if she was in trouble and it was his fault.

"What? What is it?" Concern laced into his voice. He couldn't comprehend the thoughts that were running through his mind; all of them had one thing in common, Gabriella being in big trouble.

"Calm down okay? It's just Alyssa's gone into labour. And Gabriella could use your shoulder to lean on" She chuckled slightly.

Relief rippled through his body like a stick after it had dropped into a lake. "God, you scared me. I'll be there right away."

He could imagine Phoebe smiling back at him. "Troy?"

"Hm?" He asked as he rose from his bed and began to tie his shoes in quickest attempts to get to Gabriella.

"Thank you."

_Gabriella knelt on the grass and she could feel the cold and the damp between her finger tips, the rain was thrashing down on her small body and it disguised the rivers that were being produced from her eyes. The clothes that she was wearing were stuck to her breakable body; it was making her skin glow through the material. Her body was shivering but she couldn't feel it._

_Her fingers grazed over the gold text on the black headstone, and shivers rounded over her body for the second time, only this time it was from the sensations of being so close to her. _

_But yet so far. _

_**In loving memory **_

_**Emma Montez**_

_**1976-2008**_

_**Beloved sister. **_

_**The brightest star in the sky**_

_Gabriella still couldn't comprehend how her body was 6 feet away from her but her soul wasn't there anymore. How could someone's soul die? She was sure she'd never be able to understand it. The sky was black, completely black. But there was a sudden soft hand on her shoulder. Slowly she turned around and was sickened by what she saw. _

_Her sister stood before her. But it wasn't her sister. Her skin was rotting away, the pea green, with a shade of blue and brown weren't full of life and happiness and love anymore, they were lifeless. Dead. Her hair that was usually filled with bounce and life, was lifeless, straight, the hydrated colour had faded from her tendrils. Her face was a sickening shade of white, almost grey. _

_It wasn't her anymore. _

_But yet Gabriella reached out to touch her. But her gentle touch was slapped away, Emma's skeletal hand pulled Gabriella with force from her kneeling position and grabbed her by the throat. _

"_YOU! YOU DID THIS!" Her voice was deep, not what she remembered. _

"_What?" I didn't...." She couldn't speak. She was horrified, petrified, chilled to her bare bones. _

"_YOU KILLED ME! THIS IS YOUR ENTIRE FAULT!" Her voice lacked emotion, it wasn't her. _

Gabriella's head snapped breathlessly. Her eyebrows narrowed, she blinked a few times to accustomed herself to the lighting in the bright room, and then she suddenly remembered where she was. She had to silently tell herself that she wasn't in the cemetery; she was in a hospital waiting room. The question that she didn't know was..

Which one would she prefer to be in?

The truth was Gabriella had never been to Emma's grave, not since the funeral. She could never bring herself to do it. It wasn't that she didn't care; it was more that she cared too much. She didn't want to face it. She obviously knew that she was dead, buried and gone forever, but it was as if she went to the grave it would confirm it. That she would be well and truly gone.

Her body felt stiff, in the violet chair, it curved around her body but the lack of cushioning and material in the seat made her butt go numb. Gabriella was so stunned and scared by her nightmare she didn't realise the hand on her thigh until she felt a small squeeze. Her stiff neck turned to the side and she couldn't have been more thankful.

Gabriella never remembered him being there before she fell asleep, but then again she never remembered falling asleep in the first place. "Troy..." She breathed almost thankfully that he was there. She didn't want to call him and actually confirm that she needed his strength to just breathe because she didn't have any strength herself.

"Hey." He murmured quietly, Gabriella placed her hand onto Troy's and he gave her a comforting smile and her hand a squeeze.

"When did you get here? How..." His soft lips connected with her temple, sending the fireworks through her body that she needed just to get through the next five minutes. Troy opened his mouth to say something but was soon cut off by another masculine voice...

"Are you here for Mrs. Green?" The man was dressed in periwinkle scrubs and a hair net was placed over his head, almost like what a swimmer would wear in a race. All eyes and ears opened to hear what the doctor had to say. Why was he in scrubs? They didn't usually wear them did they?

"Yes, yes we are." Cheryl replied quickly. Gabriella bit down on her bottom lip, hoping that it was good news and both mom and baby were doing fine, but something in the pit of her stomach was telling her different.

"Your sister's in surgery at the minute, she started to haemorrhage, as we started to prep her for delivery, we rushed her into surgery we're trying to contain the bleeding, she's in a critical condition but the team and I are doing all we can to save the baby and your sister." Gasps echoed from the small room and Gabriella stared at him in disbelief.

It couldn't be happening. Not again. She couldn't lose another sister. It wouldn't happen. Was she just endowed with bad luck? Why would someone do this to her? "Is she going to be okay?"

Gabriella was still looking into the distance. The bile resting in the pit of stomach was threatening to spill out onto the cold floor. "We're doing all that we can to help your sister and her baby."

Gabriella felt sick, she felt dizzy. Acid was rising up her throat; resembling a burn. She got up as quick as she could and rushed to the bin that was in the corner of the room, the vomit poured through her mouth as her body wrenched. Water spilled from her eyes as a result of her hurling. She didn't hear the rushes of footsteps on the tiled floor nor did she feel her hair being pulled away from her face, and the small hand of her sisters that was on her back.

"You done?" Cheryl asked the concern leaked through her tone, she wasn't being mean. Gabriella nodded her heavy head that was still rested over the bin. "I'll go get some towels. Pheebs come with."

Suddenly the small hand moved from her back and she rested her body back, her stomach already felt pulled from the regurgitation. Soon after her elder siblings had left the room she felt Troy's arm wrap around her protectively and pull her up into a standing position. "Fuck, Gabi you scared me"

He pulled her over to the chair where she was sitting previously, only this time he sat down first and pulled her onto his lap. "I can't lose her." She sounded like a small child. Her head found its way into the crook of his neck and she snuggled in soundlessly. "I just can't."

Troy rubbed her arms soothingly. "Hey" He pulled her chin around to look at him, love was mirroring from his spheres. "You're not gonna lose her, she's got alot of fight in her, and if she's anything like you then I'm absolutely positive that she'll pull through this, baby and all."

Gabriella smiled sadly, her whole body was shivering. "Thank you"

Troy frowned slightly. "What for?" He whispered while pulling her closer to him.

"For just always knowing what to say and for being here" He cradled her head and pressed it onto his shoulder, and pressed his lips to her hair.

"It's no problem. I'm always here. Always." He whispered soothingly.

The next 20 minutes that passed were complete torture, her sisters had returned to the room with a glass of water for her and Gabriella was currently sitting next to Troy twiddling with her thumbs in nervousness. Cheryl was pacing up and down the room but funny enough Gabriella found it somewhat soothing to her, and Phoebe was sitting with Lucas on her lap, he was soundly asleep, his breathing was even and he was probably having innocent dreams, unlike Gabriella and Phoebe was stroking his hair lovingly. Gabriella suddenly realised what it would be like for him to grow up without a mother like she had. Of course she had had a good life but she did wish for a mother and father at times.

It seemed like all four pairs of eyes were fixated onto the door like it was going to magically open.

But then it did.

The doctor walked into the room, looking exhausted and the mask on his face was lifted and rested on his forehead. His scrubs were covered in dried blood. And in unison all four people stood up, while Phoebe cradled Lucas in her arms. "Is she okay?" Gabriella asked frantically.

The doctor smiled warmly. "You're sister's doing fine. We managed to stop the bleeding and she's in recovery right now."

"And the baby?" Cheryl questioned, her panic was the same amount as everyone else's.

"Why don't you go see for yourself? You've got yourself a beautiful niece who has a good pair of lungs on her, trust me." Tears clouded Gabriella's vision and she sighed in relief deeply.

"Doctor." She called, he turned around to face her and Gabriella choked back a sob. "Thank you, you don't know what this means to us. Thank you so much."

He smiled warmly and looked at the family. "You're welcome. It looks like you're going to have trouble on your hands with this little one." After that he walked out of the room and Gabriella, Troy, Phoebe and Cheryl all rushed out behind him.

Gabriella had a niece. A little baby girl. The corridor was never ending until she hit the doors that she knew was the recovery room. Troy placed his hand on her back before she walked into the room. Gabriella turned around to look at his stunning blue eyes. "What is it?"

"I'm gonna go..." He pushed his thumbs backwards motioning to the exit of the hospital. "Y'know give you guys some time."

"Troy's that's ridiculous. You're family now, we want you there. Besides I wanna scare you into not having one of these for at least the next 10 years with my baby sister." Cheryl joked. That was more like it. Troy chuckled throatily.

"You're all sure? I don't wanna intrude." Gabriella pressed her lips to his cheek lovingly. All thoughts of everything were clouded from her memory.

"More than sure." Gabriella whispered, a warm smile on her face.

She pushed the door open and she saw mother, father and baby all sitting on the bed. Alyssa looked exhausted. Her hair was scruffily tied away from her face. But there was a look in her eye. The look of love, but it was different to what Troy looked at Gabriella with. It was a look of protection, happiness, security. It was like everything she ever wanted was cradled in her arms.

"Hey mommy." Gabriella pushed playfully.

Both Dan and Alyssa must have been so into their new baby that they didn't hear them come in and both seemed rather startled when they heard Gabriella's voice. But they soon recovered. "You wanna hold her?" Alyssa's quiet and drained voice asked her.

Gabriella nodded eagerly and bent down to the bed and Alyssa gently passed the baby into her awaiting arms. Gabriella was almost knocked back with what she saw. She had inherited the Montez skin tone, it was a shade lighter than Gabriella's, and it was obviously a mix between Alyssa's tan skin and Dan's almost white skin. Her hair wasn't black, it was a shade lighter. Gabriella moved her thumb to caress over the silky skin.

And then she opened her eyes.

They were the colour of the ocean. Of course all babies had blue eyes when they were born but there was something different about her eyes, it was if she knew what colour they were going to be.

She was the double image of Emma.

"Gabriella. Meet you're niece, Emma Hope Green." Gabriella choked back a sob.

A part of her knew that it was a little part of Emma that she had back in her life. But above all of that, the question that she didn't want to answer was...

What was she going to do now?

* * *

**Preview**

_"There's so much going on right now, I feel like I've lost my way." _

_"Then let me help you find it"_

_"I don't know if I can." _

_.... _

_"I'm not going anywhere. So you better prepare yourself because Daddy's here whether you like it or not." _

_...._

_"I can't fucking live without her. This is killing me!" _


	26. Papercut

**A/N: Okay guys. You so deserve an apology from the lack of updates. It's exam period and revising is my priority atm and there's been loads of personal things going on so on that front I'm really sorry. I personally don't like this chapter I think it lacks something, also just want you to let me know if you're still interested in this story because I do feel that I might be loosing my 'edge' or something lol. But anyways let me know what you think and I'll update when I can but things are just super busy for me atm! **

**Also I have another chapter up of Let The Best Man Win so be sure to check that out :) **

* * *

_"At this moment, there are six billion, four hundred seventy million, eight hundred eighteen thousand, six hundred seventy one people in the world.  
Some… are running scared. Some… are coming home. Some tell lies to make it through the day. Others are just not facing the truth. Some are evil men, at war with good.  
And some are good, struggling with evil. Six billion people in the world, six billion souls. And sometimes… … All you need is one."_

Peyton Sawyer: One Tree Hill

* * *

Gabriella had never felt so lost in all of her life.

When Emma had died Gabriella had slipped into a loop of depression whether she wanted to admit or not. She had locked herself into her room and would come out for the bathroom; she would barely even come out for food. Alyssa, Phoebe and Cheryl would take it in turns to go to her room and literally force food down her. It wasn't that she would ever starve herself, she wasn't on hunger strike or anything but it just hurt. It hurt to eat; it hurt to just open her mouth to inhale and exhale.

But this time was different.

She missed Emma now more than ever. She had to put up with the fact that her father was back in her life after the past 14 years. She wanted to believe that he wasn't back, that he was just maybe doing a flying visit. But deep down she knew that he wasn't. She knew that he was here to stay. Gabriella had gotten to the point where she didn't know what to think or what to feel anymore. But she knew that if Emma were here she'd know exactly what to do.

How was she meant to live?

She was an independent person also. She liked to do things alone, figure things out on her own. It had taken a total of 3 weeks to pry Gabriella from her room, which she had done voluntary after Emma had died. After she was done crying herself to sleep at night, after she was done lying on her bed not talking to anyone. She had decided that that day, she could remember the exact day it was a Wednesday.

She could remember the surprised faces, when she emerged down the stairs and Lucas had ran to her like he hadn't seen her in a life time. Now two weeks after Emma had been born, she had returned to that state. She had been in her room for those two weeks. And that day, at that particular moment in time she had decided that it was the time to start to put things behind her. To try and channel the pain through something else.

Troy.

She hadn't seen him since the birth of Emma. And she had wondered if she could still consider him as her boyfriend anymore. She had been a terrible girlfriend. Her sister's had told her that he had called and that the he had been round to the house to see her. But she didn't want it. She wanted him, wanted him more than ever. But that was the thing with her, she wouldn't admit that she wanted help. Needed help. She would rather suffer. Trusting people and letting herself be comforted by someone and for them to give her strength, people like that in her life always left her. Emma had her mom, her dad, her grandmother. So she figured that if she were to focus on working things out on her own, she'd be better off that way.

She had no idea how wrong she would be.

Gabriella sighed and began to pull out the baby pink cami that she was wearing, with a long neckline and a black t shirt underneath. With tights and a pair of sandals. Her hair was perfectly done, her makeup was perfectly applied. But why did she feel like something was missing?

She slowly made her way down the stairs to hear the familiar sound of a baby crying. She felt awful, she felt so guilty. She had missed out on the first two weeks of her nieces life because she was selfish. So fucking selfish that she had to lock herself away. Gabriella sighed and closed her eyes to calm herself. She slowly walked into the kitchen and saw all heads turn to look at her.

Alyssa was holding Emma close to her chest patting her back to soothe her, muttering and cooing sweet nothings to her. Phoebe was dancing around the kitchen. And Cheryl was pouring a glass of coffee.

But they didn't continue when she walked into that room.

"Gabi..." Cheryl stated her name, with a puzzled luck on her face. "You're up?"

Gabriella nodded slowly and made her way over to the island in the middle of the kitchen and sat on the bar stool. "Yeah."

"You want anything?" Cheryl offered holding out the jug of coffee.

Gabriella shook her head slowly and looked towards Alyssa and Emma. "I just wanna hold my niece for the minute." Alyssa looked up to her. "That's if you'll let me?" She chuckled.

Alyssa nodded eagerly. "Of course you can hold her. Don't be so ridiculous. I'm glad of the break." She added with a slight giggle. Quickly she walked towards Gabriella and placed Emma in her awaiting arms. Gabriella suddenly felt a wave of happiness wash over her.

Yep definitely Emma.

Of course all babies were gorgeous when they were newly born. But there was something about this one. All of the Montez women were equally beautiful so Gabriella knew deep down that she'd inherited that trait.

She was so mesmerized on the newborn that she didn't notice that she had almost immediately stopped wailing when Gabriella held her and she had closed her eyes and was breathing evenly.

"You're a natural." Alyssa smiled down at a teary eyed Gabriella and the now sleeping baby.

Gabriella smiled tightly and snuggled Emma closer to her. "Yeah, you think so?"

"Totally. When you and Troy have kids you'll totally be the doting mommy." Cheryl grinned smugly while closing the refrigerator door.

Troy.

"Yeah speaking of Troy what's the deal with you two anyways?" Phoebe interrogated while planting a kiss to Emma's silky skin and gingerly stroking her little finger through the tiny amount of hair she had.

"I don't know." Gabriella spoke honestly. Shaking her head slightly. "I wouldn't blame him if he didn't wanna talk to me anymore. Let alone me be his girlfriend." She added with a sigh.

"Don't be so hard on yourself. When I've been around school he's always asked how you were doing and to tell you to call him." Phoebe explained softly.

"Yeah so he could break up with me." Gabriella fired back quickly.

"I don't think he's gonna break up with you. The kid loves you. And he is a hottie." Phoebe swooned.

"Okay first of all two weeks of not answering his calls, not seeing him kinda puts the relationship on rocky grounds. Second of all I love him too but isn't it right that you can't base a relationship on love and thirdly don't say my boyfriends a hottie." Gabriella explained and pointed her finger at her sibling.

"Um, totally changing the subject I know." Cheryl held up her hands. "But Gabi what time do you finish school today normal time?"

It was hard to actually think of what time school was out she hadn't been there in that long. All the work that she had missed. Hopefully no one would have noticed she was gone. "Um, yeah."

"I'll pick you up? There's something we need to do." Cheryl informed her. The look on her face homed a soft smile. That soft smile wasn't god. What did she want her to do?

"Um, yeah that's fine." Gabriella responded distantly. "Is there something... wrong or?"

Cheryl shook her head solemnly.

She had no idea how wrong it was.

Two weeks.

Two fucking weeks and he hadn't seen her, spoken to her. She hadn't even been on Facebook and believe him, he'd checked. It wasn't that he'd turned into a psycho boyfriend but he didn't like that he couldn't be there for her. He couldn't exactly say that he knew how much pain she was in because he didn't but he wanted to at least be there for her. Put his arms around her and tell her that it was all going to be okay.

He didn't want to break up with her that was just stupid. He knew that she had just needed some time but two whole weeks? That was just boarding on torture. Just not been able to see her or talk to her everyday but not to _do _anything with her was torturing him even more. Call him a pervert? Well he was a seventeen year old _teenage _boy. So it was pretty allowed.

"Nothing huh?" Chad had asked the same question every single morning for the past 2 weeks. It seemed that he was maybe just as worried as Troy was. Well he wasn't worried because Phoebe had given him updates of how she was and what phase she was in.

"_So how is she?" Troy asked for what felt like the 1000__th__ time to him never mind her sister. _

"_Still in faze one." Phoebe responded accompanied by a sigh. _

_Troy's chestnut eyebrows furrowed. "Phase?" _

"_Oh yeah, in our family we have phases to a certain breakdown or emotional pain or whatever. Faze one, definitely where you're lying around the house not leaving your room. Second phase coming downstairs maybe talking to your family, friends. And phase three coming back to reality and maybe facing your demons. Gabriella hasn't left her room all weekend." Phoebe explained. _

_It had been 2 days since he had seen her, Emma had been born at around 3 am and Troy had left the family to be alone at around four thirty so it had technically just been over 48 hours."So what does that mean?" _

"_That lover boy means that phase 2 or even 3 is a long time away. But trust me she'll be okay. I promise." _

"Nope nothing not a thing." 2 days had turned into 2 fucking weeks, he didn't know what he wanted. Actually scratch that he just wanted to see her walk down the hallway with that angelic smile on her face. But that wasn't going to happen was it?

Or was it?

"Dude..." Chad slapped Troy's bicep.

"Chad fuck off I'm thinking." He swatted him away like he was a fly.

"No dude. It's Gabriella." Just the sound of her name made the butterflies that had vacated from her stomach for so long return. Troy turned his head as quick as you could say Albuquerque and there she was.

It was like all time and movement stopped in the hallway that morning. And there she was walking down the corridor with her bag attached solemnly to her side. Walking at the side of Sharpay. With the smile on her face that had been dreaming of. The smile all of a sudden returned to his face as her stunning brown eyes locked on the azure orbs. Worry was locked into them as she stared at him. Why? What did she have to worry about?

"Dude I gotta go..." Troy said distantly and began to walk up the corridor towards the girl that he loved.

Gabriella's eyes didn't leave his as he approached her, but a dazzling smile. The one that he had missed flashed onto her face. He almost felt like he had to run to her to get to her, otherwise she would be gone.

As soon as he stood infront of her his arms slid around her waist as quick as they could and he lifted her from the ground and pulled her lips to his.

Nothing felt better than the second his lips touched hers.

Every single ounce of worry had dissipated from Troy's brain. He could feel Gabriella smirk against his lips as her arms snaked around his neck. His tongue thrusted apart her lips and wasted no time into discovering his favourite taste again. Their tongues danced with each other, and he suddenly forgot that the corridors were filled in the school corridors. He pulled away as soon as he remembered when his lungs needed oxygen. "Hey..."

Gabriella giggled. "You totally lost it?"

Troy smirked and wiped a stray piece of hair away from her face. "I lost it when I didn't see you for two weeks."

Gabriella bit down on her lip. "I'm sorry."

Troy finally remembered to set her down on the floor and pulled her over to the side of the corridor to talk to her privately. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. Are you okay though?"

Gabriella smiled tightly. "Two whole phases in one morning. I'll get there. Might take some time but..."

"Anything I can do?" He asked as he pressed a loving kiss to her forehead.

Gabriella sighed deeply like there was a battle going on in her mind. "There's so much going on right now, I feel like I've lost my way."

Troy ran his fingers delicately over her cheekbone. Trying to memorize everything, like he had forgotten her. "Then let me help you find it"

Gabriella looked down to the tile floor and then looked up and he saw the first sign of distress since her father had showed up. He didn't think he had ever seen one person in so much pain. "I don't know if I can." Gabriella replied in the smallest voice imaginable and she took a deep breath after that.

"What are you saying?" Troy shook his head. She couldn't do this. He wouldn't' let her do this.

"I don't know. I love you I know that for sure. I love you with all my heart but, there's so much in my life right now with my dad and I feel like I've lost Emma all over again. I just need to get my head straight." Gabriella reached up and placed her hand into his hair, massaging his scalp.

"Are you saying you wanna break up?" He felt like his heart was being stomped on. She couldn't do this to him.

Gabriella's eyes widened in panic. She violently shook her head. "NO! No, no, no. Never. I thought you wanted to break up with me but no I just. I need you but I need to figure things out on my own."

Troy's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Wait you thought I wanted to break up with you. Why would I do that?"

"Because I'm a selfish bitch." She chuckled lightly.

Troy moved his hand around to her back and trailed his hand down her spine, and he could have sworn he felt her shiver beneath him. "Hey, why are you selfish?"

Gabriella looked up to him with a glossy vision. "Because I didn't call. I didn't come to see you. I just, that's the thing you have to understand, I'm selfish and I don't even know why. I was so wrapped up in my own feelings that I didn't think of how it would affect you and how you feel."

"Hey you don't have to worry about how I'm feeling I'm fine." Troy shrugged like it was nothing, but he didn't really understand what she was saying.

"I just, can you just give me some time? To figure things out?" Gabriella pleaded with him.

"Yeah, if that's what you want I'll give it to you. I just want you to know that I'm here for you okay, call me if you need me when I'm not there." He ran his hands through her hair.

Gabriella nodded. "Okay. You wanna walk me to class?" She leaned up and pressed her lips onto his.

He pulled away slightly and smiled brightly at her although it felt like he was dying inside. He felt like she was rejecting him.

"Okay."

"So you ready?"

Gabriella turned to see Cheryl looking at her. "It would be better if I knew where we were going." Her day had been horrendous, not only had everyone looked at her when she walked through the hallway, she had to put up with the pained look on Troy's face every 5 seconds.

She wasn't breaking up with him at all. She just needed time to figure out the emotions in her head. She needed him. She just didn't want to depend on him. Because what would happen if he wasn't there?

"We're going to see dad." Erm, what?

"I don't wanna go." She didn't want to be face to face with the man that walked out on her 14 years ago. She couldn't do it.

"Gabi..." Cheryl began.

"No I can't, I hate him. I know that's an awful thing to say but I thought I'd feel an ounce of love towards him. But I can't. I just hate him. I've never felt so much hate directed to one person." She could feel the grapefruit swelling in the back of her throat.

"Gabriella we just need to tell him to get out of our lives. That's it. We're not welcoming him home." Cheryl attempted to soothe. Gabriella didn't even notice that the car was already moving.

"Fine." She spoke through gritted teeth. "Let's do it."

Gabriella didn't know how long they had been driving but she soon knew when they were there because the car had pulled up outside a hotel. It was a tall building, painted white. She suddenly felt the need for Troy to be there, comforting her holding her hand telling her that he loved her.

But she couldn't.

She couldn't depend on him. What if he wasn't there and then she would be sparing herself more heartache. Again she didn't have an idea how wrong she was. Soon she was standing infront of a maple coloured door, and then Cheryl's fist was tapping on the door. A part of her wished that he wasn't there; he wouldn't come to the door. She would never get a chance to see his face again. But nothing worked out that way for Gabriella.

And then the door opened...

And there he stood. Her father.

"Cheryl?" His face was puzzled, but also amused. Like he had expected the two of them to be there, standing infront of him.

"Dad." Cheryl addressed him while the smile on his face grew. Smugly.

"Gabriella."

Gabriella's black eyebrows rose. "Hmm"

"The last time I saw you Cheryl you were crying because some guy didn't call you when he said he would." His hand rested on the door cockily as he smirked at the two girls.

Gabriella suddenly felt a sudden urge to "You know what cut the crap. Are you gonna let us in or not?" Passion and rage bubbled through her body.

"Feisty." He smirked. "Come on in."

Gabriella walked into the room and suddenly was hit by a smell that reminded her of a child. After her father had left he had left a t shirt behind and she had made her grandmother tuck her in on a night with the t shirt. So she could smell it all of the time and be reminded that he would come back.

Now she didn't even want him back.

"So girls do you want a drink or something?" He beamed like he was the proudest father in the world. Like he had been there, like he had never walked out on them. Gabriella couldn't stand it. "No?"

"Dad, why can't you just leave us alone? Why now? Why not I don't know 14 years ago?" Cheryl ranted. Her voice was on the verge of yelling.

"I've changed." He responded, shrugging lightly and then Gabriella heard a slight clang of a bottle connecting with the rim of a glass.

"Leave us alone." Gabriella pleaded. She needed him out of her life. How could she deal with it? She couldn't. "Please."

"Does what I want not matter?" It was as if he was challenging her.

"Well we wanted you back in our lives 13 years ago but clearly what we wanted didn't matter then." However Gabriella was yelling. She couldn't control it. It was like 13 years without a father was washed down upon her little body and she was letting out all of her emotion. Her body was trembling; she could feel the tears clouding her vision.

He walked closer to the two of them and directly stood between then facing them. "I'm not going anywhere. So you better prepare yourself because Daddy's here whether you like it or not."

"Listen." Cheryl spoke through gritted teeth and pointed her finger in his rounded face. "You leave us alone. We don't need this, we don't need you. Just get out of our lives. And consider that as a warning."

He held up his hands to surrender. "Look I didn't come back into your lives to hurt you I just want to get to know you."

Gabriella laughed a fake dry laugh. How could he think that they would welcome him back into their lives? "Well we don't wanna get to know you."

"Just do us all a favour and stay the hell away from us." Cheryl warned. "Come on Gabi."

Gabriella closed her eyes and silently wished for Troy.

He wanted her, needed her. He couldn't stand watching her to go through that alone. He just wanted to take her in his arms and just tell her that he loved her and that she could depend on him. He just didn't know what was eating away at her like that.

"You okay dude?" Chad asked him with concern laced into his voice.

Troy had to laugh a little at how caring Chad was being towards him, almost on the verge of being gay. "People are gonna start to think that you're gay man with the whole asking me how I am all of the time."

Chad chuckled before throwing the orange basketball at him which Troy caught without any trouble. "Fuck you."

Troy rolled his eyes lazily. "I just tried calling her. But there was nothing."

Chad looked at him sympathetically. But he didn't want the sympathy. He didn't feel that he needed it. He just needed her, really. "Dude just let her do what she wants and she'll come to you if she needs you."

He knew how independent she was. She wouldn't come to him. She really wouldn't. She said that she wanted to do things on her own so that meant she wanted to do things on her own and she wouldn't admit if she needed help. "She won't though. You don't know what she's like."

"So what's going on with the two of you? Is she breaking up with you or something?" Chad interrogated.

When Gabriella had been talking to him earlier he actually thought that she was going to break up with him, he had never been so afraid in all of his life. He had never been so afraid of losing someone like he was her. "No. At least i don't think so. It's just tearing me apart to see her in so much pain."

That was the thing about Chad and Troy's friendship they didn't have to hide how they were feeling, and he wouldn't have had it any other way. As gay as it would've sounded. "Well then do something about it."

Troy could feel the blood bubbling through his veins. He knew he shouldn't have been getting angry but he was. Troy lunged the basketball to the floor and heard it bounce as he walked away. "I can't!"

Chad glanced up from the floor where he must have been looking for a dent in the tarmac that was beneath them Troy threw the ball down with that much force. "Why the fuck not?"

He didn't know what he wanted, he was beside himself. He just wanted to run to Gabriella's house. That's what he wanted. But could he do it? No! "Fuck" He raged. "I can't live without her. This is fucking killing me."

"What is?" Chad asked his black eyebrows narrowed and confused.

"Not being able to take care of her. Not being able to listen to her telling me everything that's going on in her head it's fucked up, totally fucked up." Troy put his hand up to his head and groaned.

"Well do something about it then."

And that's what he planned to do, if only she'd let him.


	27. Where's Your Love?

**A/N: Again I'm sorry for the delay of this chapter. Revision's driving me crazy! So the next update won't be out until after my next and final exam (can't wait) which is next Tuesday. I hope you can all hang on and I hope you all like the chapter! I hope it was worth the wait. Thank you for all of the feedback you all make me smile! **

* * *

"_I never wanted to be away from her_."

Grant Anderson: Away from her. 

* * *

He had never wanted someone to need him as much in his life.

Of course he had needed people in his past. Well he still did now. He needed his mother to provide for him, give him a home, make a living, and give him money to buy clothes make him food as he was a terrible cook. He also depended on his father for manly advice about basketball and stuff. But he never thought he'd need someone to need him. Just if he could see a tear? That's all he wanted. Yeah he was selfish he knew that. But he couldn't stand that he was in love with Gabriella so fucking much and she wouldn't share her pain with him. Let him support her, let him give her strength. Instead she tried to do it herself.

Not that he didn't love her independence and determination because that was one of the reasons that he was so in love with her it ached. But he just wanted to help her. That's all he wanted. Not the way she was at the minute. It was like there was so much swimming around her small head for her to cope with and it was distracting her from doing anything. And knowing that she was hurting hurt him aswell.

And currently he'd gone for a walk to clear his head. His mom and dad had noticed a change in him, they'd told him. Ever since Gabriella's father had appeared back into her life things had just gone bad, actually scratch that. Ever since the day before her father appeared in her life she things had been bad. And then when her father showed up? He was sure it was like a horrific car accident.

He just didn't know when the recovery was coming. Obviously when there was a car accident there had to be a recovery unless it was god forbid fatal. And as weird as it sounded now he couldn't imagine his future with Gabriella not being in it. Another question that had sprung to his mind was...

How could you become so attached to one person in such a short amount of time?

Well he had met Gabriella and he had certainly felt like a magnetic pull towards her, well at first he was scared to even approach her, what a fucking stuff he was. And then as soon as he had started talking to her then came the flirtation and then he started falling and where was he now?

Truly, madly and totally deeply in love with Gabriella.

"You look troubled." An almost amused feminine voice entered his ears.

Troy didn't even realize that he had walked to the park.

His eyes drifted over to the metallic red swing set and there he saw Cheryl Montez stationed behind the swing gently pushing Lucas who had a beam on his face. He didn't even realized he was walking there. He just started to walk and then he was here? Wow he really was drawn to her.

"Something like that." Troy remained motionless at the side of fences that was shielding him from the park. He could remember sitting on the swings. One of the first times he had ever met her. He remembered how she had looked like an angel and how she didn't want him to get into trouble with his mom so she was going to walk alone.

Why couldn't things be like that now?

"So how's the love life?" Cheryl mused while pushing Lucas higher in the air. Troy took the opportunity to walk through the gate and make his way over to the two of them, sitting himself down on the swing next to Lucas before smiling brightly at him.

"You probably know more about it than I do." He sighed deeply while running a hand through the shag of his hair.

Cheryl chuckled slightly. "That bad huh?"

Troy raised his eyebrows before looking down to the tarmac sitting on the floor finding it so much easier to look at than Cheryl, because every time he did he just saw Gabriella. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"Ooooh, feisty Troy Bolton." Cheryl chuckled and for one moment, one selfish moment Troy had wished that Gabriella had been acting like she was. But people deal with things in different ways right? "I can see why she's in love with you." And then her eyes locked with Troy's with concern and seriousness written in her irises. "But nah, she's not that good if that's the answer you're looking for."

The new information cracked his heart like an egg being smashed on the ground. He just wanted to help. What else could he do? "Nah not really the answer I was looking for."

Troy looked around him to see that the sky was beginning to dim, and the sun was beginning to go down highlighting the sky in a luscious pink colour. "She won't talk to you huh?"

Troy shook his head ferociously as he bit down on his thin lip. "Nope." He answered simply. "To tell you the truth I'm scared to ask her what's going on in her head because she just seems so broken that she'd murder me if I said something."

Cheryl giggled lightly before shaking her head slightly. "She wouldn't kill you. The thing is Gabriella's took this hard. She's learned that loving people causes her pain and I think really that all this pain is building up inside of her that she's never really dealt with." Cheryl shrugged her black jumper covered shoulders before looking down at the swing. "What has she actually said to you about it?"

Troy knew how much pain she was in and he couldn't help but feel so useless, so helpless. Why the hell wouldn't she go to him? He wasn't going to leave her. He always wanted her there, she was his life now. He never thought it was possible to be in love with someone so much. "Nothing. She hasn't actually told me anything. She just looked so horrified when your dad showed up and then when he mentioned Emma?" Cheryl nodded. "She just totally lost it, like something had clicked in her brain. I don't know."

Troy shrugged his shoulders before running his hand over his face in frustration. "Troy. Can I tell you something?" Cheryl turned her head to the side to look at him more clearly. Troy turned to look at her but all he was blinded by was Gabriella's face staring at him with that stunning smile on her face.

What the fuck was wrong with him?

"Of course you can." Troy said when he caught the glimpse of Cheryl moving to sit on the swing that was between Lucas and Troy.

"I kinda feel like she should be telling you this. But I still feel that it's unfair that I don't tell you." Troy's heartbeat started to race against his chest. Although it was cracked and breaking at that particular minute. Didn't she trust him or something? "Emma was our eldest sister. And I'm sure you figured out that she died?"

Troy nodded lightly. "Erm someone showed me a newspaper article about what happened."

This seemed to enrage his girlfriend's older sister. As she laughed slightly in disbelief and then shook her head with her mouth hung open slightly. "Kids huh? Do they not consider other people's feelings? Who'd wanna do that anyways?"

_No-one worth knowing. _Troy went to open his mouth to say something but was cut off by the sound of Cheryl's voice again.

"No never mind it's just. Okay um, when it happened Gabriella was home alone. She was alone and she walked down the stairs she tried to help her sister but it was too late." Troy could hear the crack in her voice as she spoke. "We came home and Emma was lying on the floor and Gabriella was unconscious near the bottom of the stairs." She shook her head vigorously. Troy was now beginning to understand. How could he think that she wouldn't still be in pain over something like that? "There was blood. Everywhere I thought they were both dead. I um, I woke Gabriella up first, and she did and you know the first thing she did? She bolted up before anybody had the chance to say anything to her and ran over to Emma's body and just threw herself on it and she just cried. It was as if she knew what had happened."

By this point Troy could see the tears flowing down Cheryl's face as she explained what had happened. Troy couldn't speak. He didn't know what to say. He had known that Gabriella had suffered but he really didn't know how much. "Cheryl I..." Troy almost whispered.

Cheryl shook her head. "After that we called the police and Gabriella was taken to the hospital she had a pretty bad head wound, she didn't speak. She just looked so pained so broken. And as soon as we got home, she ran up the stairs and locked herself in her room. I don't think I've ever felt so useless in my whole life. In our old house I slept in the room next to hers and I could hear her crying. And she must've had a nightmare; she always has nightmares about it. And I heard her just shouting and screaming but she wouldn't let us in."

Troy could feel the tears burning in the back of his eyelids; it was as if he could see the pain in Cheryl's face as if she was reliving it. "She refused to go to the funeral at first. She said that it hurt too much and that if she went then it would really be saying goodbye and she'd never get another chance to see her again. After the funeral she locked herself in her room again. She wouldn't go to school. You know how long she was in her room for?"

Troy shook his head. Not knowing what to say or how to even attempt to make things better. "A month." Cheryl responded. "She lost so much weight. She'd eat bits of her food but not alot. And then she'd just sleep. Sleep all of the time. The first time she walked down those stairs after that month she looked like a different person. It was awful to watch."

Troy opened his mouth to talk but he felt like all of the information that was being fired at him was too much to overpower any movement of his jaw to at least say anything. "What about your dad?"

Cheryl sighed deeply and closed her eyes as if she was in pain, her eyebrows rose. "That's a total different story. He left. I'm sure you already know that right?"

Troy just nodded his head slightly not wanting to intrude.

"Well he left when I was what? 13? So I'd got to know developed a relationship with him. Some people would say that Gabi had it good. Because she never really remembered her relationship with him. But after losing her mom when she was 2 and then her dad walking out when she was 3? I seriously don't know how she hasn't been admitted to a mental home or something." She added with a slight chuckle. "She is so strong. She holds it all in y'know?"

Troy nodded. "Yeah I know." He let out a light chuckle. "I just kinda want her to tell me, want her to admit to me that she wants me to help her."

Cheryl smiled brightly before laughing almost sarcastically. "Troy you might be waiting a long time. But are you going to that party tomorrow night?"

Troy frowned. He had heard something about a party at Kelsi's house but figured that he wasn't going to go. If Sharpay and Zeke were going to be fucking all over each other aswell as Taylor and Chad he didn't really want to be the fifth wheel because he figured Gabriella wouldn't be going either. "Um, I wasn't planning on it why?"

Cheryl leaned over and pressed her hand to Troy's knee and patted it lightly. "Gabi's going. Keep your eye on her for me?"

Troy's heart suddenly jumped. He was so there. Even if it was just to make sure she was okay, wait... that was all that he wanted! "Definitely."

This seemed to satisfy Cheryl as she sat up from the swing and began to lift Lucas from the other one who seemed to be oblivious to the conversation that had just gone on. Well he was only 2. "Well we should be getting home. Keep what I've just told you between us okay?"

Troy nodded eagerly. "You definitely don't have to worry about me saying anything."

Cheryl smiled tightly before her left eye fell down into a wink. "I totally see why my sister went for you. I'll see you later honey."

"You're sure you're okay?"

Gabriella sighed deeply and nodded her head before grasping onto the red plastic cup and throwing the liquid down her throat, it was burning as if it was on fire but she didn't care. She had to drink to make the pain go away. She just had to. She was standing in the corner of a room with Sharpay leaning against the wall. She had only been there for an hour and she was sure she'd drunk as much as you would drink if you were out drinking all day. And she was trying to make it all go away.

But it wasn't working.

She didn't even know if Troy was coming or not. She was being such a lousy girlfriend. She knew it, but she couldn't help it. She just wanted it to all go away and then she could focus on him. And their relationship. But the question that had been looming around her brain all day, infact ever since she had told him she needed to work things out on her own was what if they couldn't work it out.

"I'm fine." She muttered before walking over to the kitchen worktop to pour her another drink. She could almost feel the skin and muscle on her legs were dissolving into jelly making it hard for her to even walk. But even with the heavy amount of alcohol coaxing her system all she could think about was Emma's pale motionless dead face. And then Troy's pained face. That was a word that Gabriella truly hated. Dead. It was so end like so final so definite. It was a word she never used. And she never wanted to use it.

"Hey." Sharpay nudged Gabriella in her side bring her from her thoughts. "Boyfriends here."

Just the sound of 'boyfriend' made her heart flutter. But she couldn't tell him what was going on. That was like admitting defeat. Admitting she needed his help. But she didn't did she? And then he came into her line of view. Just the way he was wearing a navy t shirt with jeans just made him look irresistible. His eyes landed on hers immediately she saw the creases in the skin near his spheres knowing that he had automatically started smiling to see her. Gabriella took the opportunity to go and fill her cup up with more of the killer liquid.

She again lifted the crimson cup to her pouted lips and let all of the liquid burn down her throat and make its way into her blood stream. And then she felt a pair of hands burn around her small waist, and her intoxicated body jumped although turned around slowly to be met by her favourite colour in the form of his eyes. "Hey gorgeous."

Gabriella's lips reflexively curved upwards into a drunken smile. "H...hey yourself." She slurred slightly. She saw the way Troy's thin lips turned into a slight smile before hugging her small body to his built muscles. His arms contracted around her waist and he kissed her forehead lightly, before pulling away reluctantly. She thought that it was his way of telling her that he was there for her no matter what. But she didn't need it. Did she?

"How much have you had to drink?" He asked slightly amused before she pressed her nose to his t shirt and inhaled her favourite smell in the world.

"Not nearly enough believe me." She muttered hoping it went unheard by Troy, who was peppering kisses to the mass of black hair that was infront of him.

He gingerly pulled her head away from his chest and looked into her dilated pupils. "You ok?"

Gabriella nodded although her head felt like it was weighing a thousand pounds on her small shoulders. "I'm better now that you're here."

That seemed to be the answer he was looking for. He pulled her body back to him again and held her there for a few minutes, while she was inhaling the intoxicated smell that was him, and a part of her was allowing it to support her and give her the strength that she needed to sort herself out. But she quickly shook all of those thoughts out of her head when she pulled away from him and leaned up and pressed her lips to his in a hungry kiss.

Troy seemed to be as just excited as she was as his tongue forced her lips apart and began to fight with her own tongue. She took the opportunity to discover his mouth again, every crevice. It felt like hadn't kissed him like this in ages. Well to be precise it had been a month. A whole month without kissing him like this. Why the hell hadn't he broken up with her?

"You want a drink?" He asked as he pulled away breathlessly.

Gabriella bit down on her bottom lip seductively and nodded eagerly.

It was going to be a long night.

Gabriella could feel the way his hot husky breath was upon her as his fingers pumped inside of her energetically. Gabriella could feel the pressure building inside of her body. She was moaning his name erotically as her body was writhing up and down covered in sweat. It was the first time all night she hadn't thought of her father or her sister.

Although she was completely intoxicated she still knew what she was doing she could feel herself moaning louder and louder as his fingers were curving inside of her to get further inside of her. "Troy.... Troy..." She chanted slightly slurred, his name was echoing from the walls and she could see the top of Troy's naked torso glistening with sweat.

It wasn't until then she was hit with a sudden wave of sickness. But she decided to ignore it, the sensations that Troy was evoking upon her overrode every other feeling she had ever experienced. Pain being at the top of the list.

"Give into it." He whispered sensually, it was at that moment that Gabriella felt the familiar pull around her stomach and felt stars cloud her vision as she let the orgasm wash over her. Oxygen had been burnt from her lungs as her naked chest was heaving up and down uncontrollably.

Gabriella knew that Troy wasn't as wasted as she was. She could almost smell the alcohol sweating from her small body but she still felt wasted. Like if she got up right now she wouldn't be able to stand up straight. But she gingerly leaned down and picked up her underwear and slipped it on quickly along with Troy's shirt that was lying on the ground.

"Troy..." She whimpered, still half slurring. Her vision was going blurred and she could still feel the vomit in the lining of her stomach.

"Yeah baby?" He whispered sensually before lying down fully on the bed that Gabriella had come to learn was Kelsi's spare room.

"Um..... I umm... I w..want.." She slurred closing her eyes in the process, but her body was fighting every sign of sleep. She didn't want that. She just wanted to enjoy not having to think and being with the man that she loved.

"What do you want?" Troy asked still amused at how wasted she was but half concerned for her. She could tell by how he was talking to her.

"All of you." She bit down on her lip anticipating an answer. Any minute now... although there were seconds of silence she didn't know what to expect.

The few seconds of silence were killed by the sound of a sigh and she saw troy's hands run up to his face as he ran his hands over the baby soft skin roughly. "Gabi... I..."

Oh no. He didn't want this.

Gabriella suddenly looked to the other side away from him. She knew that it was half of the alcohol talking. She knew it wasn't right; half of it was because she was totally intoxicated and she wanted more stimulation than Troy was providing for her. And the other half was telling her that if he just pushed himself inside of her then all of her pain would be gone. Vanished.

"Gabi, it's not that I don't want to because I do. I really, really do. But this isn't right. You're wasted. And when we finally do have sex I want you to remember it in the morning." He chuckled slightly at the last part.

It was at that minute that Gabriella felt the vomit rising from her stomach, the pain washing back down upon her. She jolted up as quick as she could holding her hand over her mouth. She did her best to make it from the bottom of the bed but she fell pathetically on the floor.

"Gabi what is it?" Troy asked quickly as she heard the echo of him jump up from behind her.

"I'm gonna be sick." She heaved as she spoke and she ran to the bathroom after her shoulder colliding with the bathroom doorframe causing her to lose her balance and fall pathetically to the floor while she felt the vomit escape from her mouth to the porcelain toilet.

It was at that minute she felt Troy's hands holding back her hair and rubbing her back in attempt to soothe her. Gabriella gasped deeply as she tried to catch her breath as she finished throwing up, she gingerly felt around until she found the toilet role to wipe her mouth but she couldn't do it.

"Here." Troy noticed her distress as he pulled her back lightly and pulled at the toilet role from her hand and wiped around her mouth. Gabriella took the opportunity to lean back into his stone chest and close her eyes tightly. Suddenly she felt a huge grapefruit swelling in the back of her throat and the tears burned through her eyes.

What the hell was wrong with her?

A sob involuntarily left her throat, and her small body jolted. "Hey, hey, hey what is it? What's wrong?" Troy's panicked voice entered her ears. "Hey come on tell me."

Gabriella shook her head and shrugged her shoulders lightly. "It hurts." She answered simply and Troy took the opportunity to kiss the mass of black locks infront of him and lift her onto his lap, wrapping his strong arms around her and at that moment she allowed herself to cry. Allowed herself to lean on Troy for help.

Gabriella didn't know how much time had passed but she could still feel the alcohol surfing around her body even as she cried onto Troy's bare silky soft golden skin.

Troy carried Gabriella's heavy body that was leaning onto him as she couldn't walk herself as he tried to quietly carry her through her house and up to her bedroom. Her small body was leaning all of her weight onto him as he had his arm wrapped around her torso tightly and hers was wrapped around her shoulder. The other arm was opening the door. And then he was blinded by a bright light.

Shit.

Following that Alyssa walked through the archway from the living room carrying a small bundle that Troy knew was the new addition to the family in her arms. "Jesus. You scared me I thought you were..." And then her face paled. "Oh my god is she okay?"

Troy held out his free arm to signal a stop sign to silently tell Alyssa to stop panicking. His eyes then drifted down to Gabriella who had her eyes tightly closed and was probably completely oblivious to what was going on right then. "She's just drunk. Really, really drunk."

Alyssa inhaled deeply and shut her eyes in the process, her straight teeth sunk into her lips as her head shook in annoyance. "Great. Just what we need right now."

Troy didn't know how drunk she was, he also didn't know whether she'd remember any of this in the morning. He also didn't know whether she'd remember crying to him, telling him that it hurt. He so badly wanted to ask her but the other part of him also wanted her to tell him in her own time, when she felt it was necessary. But he couldn't watch her like this. It was killing him inside. But he didn't want her to know that. "It's okay. I'll take her up."

Alyssa shook her head quickly. "No its just that her Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi are performing tomorrow so she's gonna have some killer of a hangover. It doesn't bother me she's totally wasted because we've all done it but" Then she sighed. "Never mind. Do you mind taking her up Troy? I'm really sorry about this."

Troy held his hand up signalling for her to stop talking. Not in a mean way though. "It's totally fine. I don't mind at all." Troy took the opportunity to lift Gabriella's legs and cradled her like a baby in his arms. So it made things easier for him. Her eyes were securely closed and he could feel her alcohol tinted breath on the skin of his neck. He wrapped her arm around the back of his neck as he carried her up the stairs.

He opened the door of her bedroom and gently laid her down on the bed. He gingerly pulled back the covers and settled her beneath them. It was lucky that Kelsi had an older brother otherwise he would have been diving back to her house half naked. And he knew that her sisters loved to embarrass him. He undressed Gabriella and placed her in some violet shorts and a vest leaving his t shirt forgotten on the floor.

He listened to the evening out of Gabriella's breathing and tailed his fingers through her hair a few times before pressing his lips to her forehead a few times. "Goodnight." He whispered.

He had never wanted her to need him as much in his life.


	28. We Both Knew It Wouldn't Be Easy

**A/N: Thanks for all of the support and stuff guys :) I hope you're all still enjoying the story and stuff. I know there's a lack of Troyella in this chapter but don't worry. It will all be back on track soon. Let me know what you think? I'll try and get the next one up as soon as I can :) **

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"At this moment there are 6470818671 people in the world, some are running scared, some are coming home, some tell lies to make it through the day, others are just not facing the truth, some are evil men at war with good, and some are good struggling with evil, sixs billion people in the world, six billion souls, and sometimes, all you need is one"

Hilarie Burton: One Tree Hill

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At this moment there are 6470818671 people in the world, some are running scared, some are coming home, some tell lies to make it through the day, others are just not facing the truth, some are evil men at war with good, and some are good struggling with evil, sixs billion people in the world, six billion souls, and sometimes, all you need is one

Gabriella was sure that if someone was to run over her head with a truck, it wouldn't have hurt nearly as much as it did right then. She was also sure that a 3 month pregnant woman could have been puking all day and she still wouldn't have felt as sick as Gabriella did. She was also sure that a vampire wouldn't look at bright lights and feel blinded as much as she did at that moment in time. She had never wanted to be at home snuggled up in her bed as much as she did at that moment. She felt like she couldn't move. Her whole body felt stiff. She felt cold; her whole body was shivering as a result of the alcohol that was dispersing out of her body.

And in less than 10 minutes?

She was performing infront of at least a thousand people and she couldn't seem to get things right. She couldn't stand on a stage and pretend that everything was okay. That her whole life wasn't falling apart, when it was.

"5 minutes and counting girls, 5 minutes?"

Whoa, whoa. Where the fuck did 5 minutes come from? And there Gabriella sat, with her head in her hands. Trying her best not to smudge the make-up that had taken a half hour to apply. She had to pull this together, for the other girls. The other girls that had been so good to her since she had moved here. She couldn't let them down. That was the worst thing. She could deal with letting herself down. But the other girls were depending on this. They wanted this. And deep down somewhere Gabriella wanted it too. But she couldn't bring herself to do it. All day at rehearsals she had been like a walking dead, and it wasn't just from the hangover she was suffering from. It was all of the pain, she felt like she was losing Troy. She had practically forced herself on him last night and she couldn't have felt more embarrassed. He had seen a side of her that she thought would never surface. But it had.

She couldn't describe it. She knew Troy loved her. She had no doubt about that and she was hurting knowing that she was hurting him because of her own pain. But she had just felt a need to be loved. A need for him to show her that he loved her. This morning she was glad that he hadn't. She didn't want to give up her virginity while she was paralytically drunk and she would have regretted it in the morning. She remembered him taking her home that morning and she remembered getting up that morning and seeing the looks from her family. Not of anger. But of disappointment. Which she knew was miles worse.

"Gabi, sweetie, you okay?" Sharpay carefully asked as she approached her wearing a similar dress to what Gabriella was wearing. It was a short white dress, a sweetheart cut on the neckline with a row of shimmering silver sequins around the top along the neckline. The dress then followed into a triangular cut at just below the belly button so you could see the waist line of her. It then followed on into a skirt. Tassels hung like string from everywhere you looked on the dress. The one that Gabriella was wearing was almost identical and highlighted her curves.

"Headache." She whispered, as if it would save her from the torturous music that was going to slice through her ears in... 5 minutes. She didn't know if she could do it.

"Gabi... come on we gotta go..." Kelsi tenderly instructed.

Gabriella had to laugh a little bit, because Kelsi looked so out of place and she also looked so uncomfortable. The dress that she was wearing locked around her neck with gems and sequins around it and her hands were securely on her waist making sure that no flesh was seen. "I'm coming..." She smiled solemnly. Gabriella stood up from the couch she was sitting on and removed the sunglasses that she was wearing to block out the light.

"So you spoken to Troy today?" Sharpay asked as she linked her arm with Gabriella's and their steps fell into sync with another.

Gabriella shook her head before sighing deeply. "I don't know if I dare. What if he thinks I'm a slut who offers it out to anyone?" The truth was that Troy had called her through the day but she had been rehearsing and didn't really want to face the embarrassing phone call of her having to apologize for being a slut.

"Hey! You're not a slut." Sharpay enforced. "You seriously think you're the first girl to force yourself on Troy?"

Gabriella turned to Sharpay sharply. Sharpay closed her eyes tightly and bit down into her bottom lip. "Shit, sorry."

Gabriella smiled softly and shook her head and squeezed Sharpay's arm slightly with her own. "Don't worry about it. So how are things with Zeke?"

A slight smirk grew onto Sharpay's face as soon as the name had rolled from her tongue. How much she wished things could have been that simple again with Troy. How did things get so bad? How did she get so lost? "Things are good. Really good." She raised her eyebrows slightly.

Gabriella nodded. "That's.... good. No great."

"Alright girls stop there." Gabriella looked up to the source of the voice whom she knew was her sister. Phoebe was stood infront of the four girls smiling tightly. Her cheek bones high like she had been on Botox or something. Her hair was curled and to one side draping down below her breasts and she was wearing a yellow one shoulder dress with a black thin waist belt. "Okay you're gonna do good right?"

Sharpay smiled brightly although Gabriella's mind was focused on other things. "We're gonna try. Hopefully those bitches won't upstage us."

Phoebe's eyebrows rose. "Yeah well unfortunately they've already been on so um you just have to go out there and do your best right? Gabs, you alright?"

Gabriella nodded quickly although her head felt like it weighed five thousand pounds. "Uh huh. I'm good."

"Okay so I just want you to go out there and do yourselves proud okay, and if they win? So what. At least you know that you will have put everything you have into it and just have fun. Okay?" Phoebe instructed before looking at the four girls with a shadow of hope around her irises.

Gabriella nodded solemnly and looked down at the ground. Suddenly there was a loud squeal coming from the blonde standing next to her. "Come on girls let's do it."

Gabriella did the best that she could to muster up a fake smile on her face before she walked out onto the stage. The stage was in total darkness, and Gabriella was sure the curtain was down, as she couldn't see anyone. She felt like everything was a blur. Like it was all passing by her in a daze. She was handed her sparkling microphone and held it to her side robotically. She couldn't describe what had happened to her. She felt stiff, like she couldn't do this. She turned her body to the side to begin the song and then she heard her name been called. And then what happened?

The curtain went up.

The music cued from behind her and there was nothing she could do. She had to pull herself together. She had to do this. She held the microphone up to her mouth, "_Aah push it." _

The words had left her mouth and she felt her eyes scanning the audience for one person and one person only. Her eyes were skimming the audience for him. She couldn't find him. The words to the song were rolling off of her tongue without a second thought and all she could see was an ocean full of people. She wanted to see him. Needed to see him. Needed to know he was there.

And then she saw her father.

Gabriella froze. Whilst walking across the stage. Her eyes narrowed in on her father. He was standing there with a smug smile on his face. She couldn't go on. She couldn't do it. But she had to. She could hear the echoes of the other girls singing in the background and she didn't know how she was holding it together and all of the words were leaving her mouth and if she wasn't personally melting inside she wouldn't have realized that no one noticed that she was breaking. Gabriella wanted to run off of the stage and scream in his face, pound on his chest and tell him how much she hated him and how much she needed him to leave her alone. That was all she needed. But she couldn't. All she wanted was to see his face....

And then she did.

The azure orbs locked on her coffee brown and immediately she could feel tears cloud her vision, now all she wanted was to run to him and let him envelope her in his arms and let him take it all away. She could see the concern in the creases of his face that were hidden by the smile that was on his face, the encouraging smile. She could tell that he was telling her that he was thinking of her, that he wanted her to go on.

The last thing Gabriella remembered was the lights going off and everyone applauding followed by the smiles that were on Taylors, Kelsi's and Sharpay's face, and her own chest that was heaving up and down uncontrollably. She had done it. She had got through it and she couldn't remember dancing a single step, singing a single word. All she remembered was seeing her father's face and then looking for Troy's, hoping for him to reassure her. Something she thought she would ever do. She was mentally kicking herself for relying on Troy. She couldn't do it. He wouldn't be there in the long run. She couldn't trust for him to be there. Not forever. And now she was sitting on the couch where she started. She felt as if she was in a trance. One thing that she loved, singing. One thing that she was passionate and cared about and the one person that she hated was there to ruin it for her. Her father.

She didn't understand. Why was he there? Gabriella didn't even have the chance to look for her other sisters, they promised they would be there; she just looked at her father and looked at Troy. Secretly begging for him to whisk her away from the hellhole that she was in. But that was bad wasn't it. That was bad, really bad. "Gabriella?" A careful quiet voice called her name from the corner of the room. Sharpay was standing looking at Gabriella with concern locked in her spheres. "You okay? You look like you saw a ghost?"

Gabriella laughed slightly, a dry bitter laugh. "I wish I would have seen a ghost. Would make things so much easier." She stared off into the distance, onto the sandy coloured wallpaper that coated the walls.

"What?" Sharpay enquired. Her voice must have been miniscule because it wasn't an astounded kind of what. Just one of confusion. "You did great out there" She referenced, her finger pointed to the door where they had walked down to the stage. Down to where she had seen her father. "Despite the hangover the size of Alaska." She added with a slight giggle.

"I feel so lost." Gabriella commented into the distance. Her mouth was rested upon the olive skin that was her arm.

"What? Why? Come on talk to me...." Sharpay rushed over to where Gabriella was sitting, before Gabriella turned to look at her with tears clouding her vision and a watery smile on her face.

"I...." Gabriella began but was cut off by...

"Girls come on the results about to be called..." Phoebe smiled brightly. Gabriella suddenly felt jealousy in the pit of her stomach. How could Phoebe be so cool about it? How could she look like everything was okay when Gabriella felt like she was dying inside? It couldn't work that way. Both of the seniors stood from the couch they were sitting on, Gabriela was half thanking her for interrupting and sparing her from telling Sharpay the truth. Something she hadn't told anyone. Not even Troy. She didn't like telling people about it. She felt they would give her their pity. Pity she didn't want. And certainly pity she didn't need.

The next thing gabriella knew she was standing on the stage clasping hands tightly with Taylor and Kelsi. Her eyes were transfixed into the distance. She couldn't do this anymore. She wanted out. She wanted it done. She couldn't be there anymore. She wanted her legs to pick her up and carry her to Troy. That's what she wanted, what she needed.

She needed him.

And she didn't want to need him.

She wanted to be able to do this on her own but as time had passed she had realised that she couldn't. She couldn't go through it alone. If she wanted their relationship to be successful she had to be honest with him, she had to let him be able to catch her when she fell to the ground. When she was crying she had to let him wipe away her tears and tell her that it was going to be okay.

"Okay. So the results are in. Remember this is for the record contract for after you guys graduate. You will work with some of the best artists. So good luck to the both of you." The host instructed. He swung his head both from side to side to Gabriella and the girls to the other group. Gabriella hadn't even looked at them.

"And the winner's are...." There was a defining pause where Gabriella should have been feeling anticipation, nerves. She should have been feeling all of the typical feelings. But she wasn't. She was just feeling love. Lots and lots of love, directed towards Troy. She wanted to see him. She needed to. "Unwritten."

And then she felt what she was meant to feel.

They hadn't got it. She felt disappointed definitely. She felt guilty. And then she felt two warm arms wrap her in an embrace. Taylor's arms circled around Gabriella to share a hug of conciliation. But most of all Gabriella wanted one thing.

_Troy._

* * *

_Gabriella._

Troy saw the panic in her eyes. He saw the desire. He could see everything he was sure no one else could see. Because she did amazing. And he saw the heartbreaking look on her face when she had seen her father standing there. Troy then saw the horror that had struck her face. As soon as she had locked eyes with his he knew that no matter whether if she knew it or not she was saying one thing to him. _I need you_.

Troy didn't know what else do to. Gabriella had texted him and told him to go home after the show and that she would call him tomorrow. Troy had no other choice than to oblige. When she was on that stage he just wanted to run up to her and take her in his arms and kiss her senseless and tell her that it was okay. She didn't need to be in pain anymore. He would take it all away in a heartbeat if he could. But he couldn't. He didn't have that power. He was only a human. A human who was madly in love. And couldn't bear to see her in pain. Not anymore.

So he did what any good boyfriend would do. What any good boyfriend could do. He stood outside and waited for Gabriella's father to walk out of the room. Everyone had disappeared pretty quickly and the only thing Troy was hoping was that he hadn't tried to go backstage to see Gabriella because he knew that would have really broken her. Totally and utterly. And then he appeared.

Thank god.

Troy actually didn't know what he was going to do. He just knew it was what he had to do. He stood and he waited. He had to admit that his palms were sweating a little at the fact that he was meeting Gabriella's father. Even though he wasn't there it was still her father. Still the man that he was supposed to have approval of the man who he was supposed to feel intimidated by. The man he was supposed to ask if he ever wanted to marry his daughter.

"Um, Mr Montez?" Troy called timidly.

He stopped abruptly right infront of Troy and seemed to inspect his face. Inspect how he looked. "You." He pointed towards his face. "I know you. You're Gabriella's boyfriend."

Troy nodded. "And you're her father."

He chuckled slightly before pointing in Troy's face again. "You, you're funny. I like that. I'm glad you knew I was her father."

Troy snickered slightly. "It's a wonder that she knew you were her father when you showed up at her door."

Gabriella's father raised his eyebrows a little as anger flashed through his features. It was as if his whole demeanour had changed. Troy knew he shouldn't have said it but he had said it now, and he couldn't take it back. But he didn't want to take it back, he edged towards Troy but Troy didn't show any change in demeanour. He remained standing still. "Excuse me?"

Now his face was incredibly close to Troy's. Troy was actually glad that his friends had left because he was sure they would have said something by now. Troy wasn't actually sure why he hadn't said anything as of yet. Something that would insult him. "You heard me. Do you seriously know how much pain you're causing her? The whole family?"

He laughed a little, a fake laugh and then got up close in Troy's face. "You listen to me son. What does on between me and my family is none of your business. So I suggest that you keep your nose out okay?" And at that point he turned his back and started to walk away. Troy could hear the echoes of his footprints that were pressing down hard onto the tiled floor.

"Can I ask you a question? Mr Montez?" Troy realised that he didn't actually know his first name. He still wanted to be polite though. It was his girlfriend's dad. And he obviously hadn't made a good first impression at all. He turned around slowly to look at Troy. "What do you think is gonna happen?"

His eyes and brows furrowed in confusion, the eyes that were identical to Gabriella's. "What do you mean what do I think is gonna happen?"

Troy shrugged loosely. "When they don't let you back into their lives, what are you gonna do? Are you gonna force your way in. Force your daughters to be in so much pain just so you can see them? Wouldn't you rather that they are happy?"

He looked down at the floor and then started to walk back in Troy's direction. His footsteps still echoing over the ground. "What do you mean causing them pain? I just want to get to know them."

Troy shrugged his defined shoulders for the second time. "Yeah I know but after 14 years I really don't understand. Did you not think of them at all in the last 14 years?"

This seemed to enrage him. Troy thought he was actually going to punch him. His nostrils flared and his eyes widened. "How dare you even ask that?"

"How dare you walk away from them for 14 years and expect everything to be peachy when you come back. You do know it doesn't work that way right?" Troy's voice threatened to get louder. He wasn't yelling, there was just passion in his tone.

"You can't talk to me like that. You don't even know me. You don't know anything about why I left. Nothing at all." Troy began to feel his body start to shake in anger. He knew it wasn't his place, and he knew he was being out of order but there was nothing left for him to do. He needed Gabriella to feel better; he needed to see her smile without him knowing she was faking it. He needed her to not be crumbling and falling apart inside.

"Well y'know what neither do they. But they don't. But another thing is I don't think that they want to know." Troy stated his voice back to its normal level.

"You don't know anything." Mr Montez spoke, simply shaking his head slowly.

"Did you know that your youngest daughter was there when your eldest died? I know a hell of a lot more than you do believe me." Troy declared

He looked down to the ground as if he was ashamed and then looked up to meet Troy's eyes with an irritated look on his features. "I don't have to listen to this."

And then he turned and started to walk away.

"Yeah you do that. But this time don't come back. They don't want you. You have to realize that." And that time he didn't turn back. But Troy only wondered if he was going to come back.

Now the only thing he had to do was get to Gabriella.

He had to tell her that it was okay. He wasn't going to stop until she listened to him.

And he was going there right that second....


	29. Talk You Down

**A/N; Hey again guys. I know this chapter is absolutely appalling, I know I'm holding my hands up to that, things have just been really hectic this week my mum's been taken ill so I haven't really put my all into this chapter. So let me off please :) lol. Thanks for all of the feedback it really makes me smile and I hope you're all having a good week :) **

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_"It's not about what happened in the past, or what you think might happen in the future. It's about the ride, for Christ's sake. There is no point in going through all this crap, if your are not going to enjoy the ride. And you know what... when you least expect something great might come along. Something better then you even planned for."_

Irving Feffer: Along came polly

* * *

It's not about what happened in the past, or what you think might happen in the future. It's about the ride, for Christ's sake. There is no point in going through all this crap, if your are not going to enjoy the ride. And you know what... when you least expect something great might come along. Something better then you even planned for.

Gabriella was lying on her bed, beneath her covers. Her head resting solemnly on the pillow. Gabriella couldn't remember getting changed after she had performed. She couldn't remember the car ride home. She couldn't remember getting into bed and she couldn't remember going to sleep. All she knew right that second was that there was an annoying tap at her window. At first she thought that it was just a dream. She used to have a nightmare where she would be asleep and she would be awoken by a tapping on her window and when she walked out onto the balcony either Emma would be standing there or the men who murdered Emma would be there. She had to pinch her skin lightly to make sure that she was really awake. The light pinch caused her to jump out of her skin.

And then she was petrified.

What if they were there? No that was barbaric.

They were locked away right? They had been arrested by the police; she witnessed that with her own two eyes. So that was totally out of the question. And from what Gabriella knew you couldn't climb out of your own grave, magic didn't exist. Emma hadn't mysteriously been resurrected. And come from San Francisco to Albuquerque to haunt her. Her dad? No, of course that was stupid. He would probably just knock at the door until it flew from its hinges, why would he come to her window?

Curiosity had taken over her small body, as she climbed out of the bed timidly and immediately felt the cold air hit her like a tonne of bricks. Her small legs carried her towards the doorframe and she stood infront of the balcony door hesitantly. Her thin arm reached out to grab the gold door handle, but she jolted before opening it. Should she have got someone? But the tapping hadn't stopped. She stepped out into the cold November air and suddenly began to feel her body start to shiver.

And then she saw him.

His hair loomed had grown half the way down his neck, the way she could tell that he needed a haircut. Funny how she hadn't noticed that before. He was looking down on the ground for another stone; she could see the golden tan skin poking through the white t shirt he was wearing. And she could hear slight murmurs and if she listened close enough curses from his mouth. She felt a tight smirk form on her face as she watched her boyfriend ponder around on the grass for stones to throw at her window.

"What kind of stupid house doesn't have any stones? Calling would have been so much easier. Bolton nice move." She heard him murmur with his head in the ground. Gabriella decided watching him would be so much fun. She folded her arms across her chest even though she was shivering like a leaf in 70 miles per hour gale force winds. As she was only wearing a beige cotton long sleeved shirt and a pair of beige short shorts.

"This stupid house doesn't have any stones." Troy's whole body jerked up at the sound of her voice and he looked at her in surprise. "And while we're on the subject what stupid boy decides that it's logical to throw stones at somebody's bedroom window when there are two small children in bed." She added with a smirk on her face.

Troy bit down on his plump bottom lip. "Yeah, I um, didn't really think this through."

Gabriella giggled a small sweet laugh. "Figures." Gabriella swept a stray curl away from her face that was shielding her vision from Troy. She sighed deeply. "Troy, what are you doing here?" She smiled.

Troy chuckled heartily before putting his hands in his jeans pockets, making him look innocent, like he was 10 years old. "I wanted to talk to you."

Gabriella glanced down at the silver linked watch with the stud faced watch that homed around her wrist. "What at 1am?" She asked rhetorically.

"Can I come in? It's cold?" He asked and Gabriella saw his body violently shiver.

Gabriella nodded. What would it harm? He was her boyfriend after all right? And she was being a lousy girlfriend. She eagerly closed her bedroom doors and tiptoed down the stairs so she didn't wake anybody up. And opened the front door and there he stood with a lazy smile on his face, his hands still tucked into his jeans pocket. "Hey."

Gabriella smiled and closed her eyes slightly. "Hey. Come in but you have to be quiet, seriously."

Troy chuckled in a whisper before grabbing the hem of her shorts and pulling her to him. "Mum's the word." And then he kissed her soundlessly on the lips. He then tapped the door behind him. When Gabriella had run out of breath she pulled away gasping for air. "Right I had a big speech planned."

"Wait." Gabriella hushed him with her index finger and pulled him up the stairs quickly and quietly into her bedroom. She silently closed the door behind her. "If my sisters find you here you know that they'll kill you right?" She asked him n a hushed tone.

Troy nodded eagerly. "The thrill of it makes it more exciting though." He replied excitedly like a kid on Christmas.

Speaking of, it was Christmas soon and Gabriella had totally forgotten, she had been too wrapped up in herself and her own troubles to bother about anyone else. She knew she had been selfish really. And now it was time to face the music, she knew that too. "Okay right now I'm gonna talk." He started but Gabriella held up a hand to silence him.

"No, let me start." She said quickly. "Sit." She grabbed Troy's hands and pushed his body down onto her bed. "I've been a pretty lousy girlfriend." Troy began to open his mouth to speak but Gabriella signalled him with her hand again. "And don't say that I haven't because I have. I haven't been, because I know that I have. I've totally ignored you and I've been totally selfish. And I didn't even tell you why."

"Gabi you don't..." Troy started but Gabriella cut him off again.

"No I really do. You know about my dad right?" Troy nodded slightly before looking up at her with concerned eyes. "But the other reason is because my sister, she." Gabriella tried the best to swallow the melon sized lump in her throat as the tears formed in her eyes. "She died. And the guys that did it, they've finally been sent to prison and I just. I guess it all just hit me again. I'm so sorry Troy. I really am." She added as one stray tear slowly trickled down her porcelain face.

"Hey, hey." He coaxed by leaning his arms forward and locking them around her back immediately pulling her closer to him. "You don't have to be sorry okay. Don't apologize."

Gabriella took the opportunity to fall onto troy's lap and snuggle into his side, trying to produce warmth for herself as she hadn't warmed up yet. "No it's not okay. I just, I have this thing."

She felt Troy smirk against her olive skin tone before kissing the skin on her shoulder. "Care to elaborate?"

"It's stupid. And you'll probably think I'm stupid." She sighed deeply; both of them were still keeping their voices low.

Troy kissed her clothed shoulder again to reassure her. "I could never think you're stupid."

Gabriella sighed deeply. "I just, I like to work through things on my own."

She knew Troy was frowning from behind her she could just sense it. "Why?" He asked in a gentle voice.

"Because that way I can't get hurt. My mom died, my dad left. My grams died. And my sister died. I mean they were all people that I relied on. And I just think that if I work through things on my own, I can't get hurt when people aren't there anymore. I told you it was stupid."Gabriella spoke carefully.

Troy's head that was rested on her back shook rapidly. "It's not stupid. That's not stupid at all. But I'm always gonna be here for you okay? I promise you that."

Gabriella could feel herself getting more and more worked up as more tears were falling down her face. "No. You can't. I mean what happens if we break up?"

"We are NOT gonna break up." He spoke defiantly.

"You don't know that." She whispered. "I mean what if we go to different colleges and..."

Troy silence her by twirling her around on his lap so now her legs were on either side of his waist so she was straddling him. "I'm always gonna be here. No matter what. Okay? Don't ever think that we aren't gonna be together okay? You know what?"

Gabriella shook her head slowly as he brought the pad up of his thumb to wipe the tears from her face. "I can't see my future without you in it. Now tell me who's stupid."

Gabriella smiled brightly, for the first time she felt genuinely happy. "You might be stupid. But you're my stupid guy." And then she sighed deeply feeling a swell of emotion over her frame.

"Come on baby, what's on your mind?" Gabriella couldn't help but feel the same butterflies in her stomach every time he called her 'baby'. It was something that she'd missed.

Gabriella looked down almost to the floor before his gentle fingers lifted her chin so she was forced to look at him, rounds of love were being emitted from the azure spheres, and then he placed his careful lips to the tip of her nose. "I just.... I wanna let it all out y'know."

Troy nodded his head slightly. "Let it all out then."

Gabriella giggled slightly. She didn't know what she had to do to let it all out. She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know how. There's just, so much in here." She spoke in a raspy voice and slung up her hand to her chest. "That I... I just don't know how to get there."

Troy's hand gingerly reached up and stroked the ebony stray curls that were on her face. "How about this? You can hit me? Get rid of all of your anger that way. But I'm you don't wanna bring harm to your super hot sexy boyfriend right?" Troy instructed with a slight smile, causing her to laugh a little through her tears and she shook her head rapidly, telling him that she didn't want to hurt him. Anymore than she already had. "Or you can just cry. I can tell that you want too."

"I love you Troy." Gabriella spoke carefully.

"I love you too baby" Troy replied as he was still stroking the cushion of her hair.

Gabriella smiled graciously. "We're gonna be ok aren't we?"

Troy kissed her forehead tenderly. "Of course we are."

And then Gabriella fell limp in his arms. And let her body cry out all of the emotion that was inside of her.

* * *

Troy held her small body close to him as she slept. He had managed to move the two of them so she was positioned above him on the bed. His strong biceps were wrapped securely around her lower back as he listened to her deep heavy breaths. Every so often he would stroke her back, he didn't even know why. And he would pepper kisses to her forehead. Was he tired? Definitely. Exhausted? Without a doubt. But he wouldn't have traded anything. He had missed this.

And he knew she had too.

Deep down he knew or he would have liked to of thought that their little talk would have been a turning point in their relationship. The point where she would start to depend on him. Let him in all of the way. But he would have to wait to find out. Suddenly there was an opening of a door, a sniffle which indicated someone had got up. _Please don't come in here. Please don't. _If someone came in he would never be allowed to see Gabriella again. She wouldn't be allowed to share the same breathing space of him. But then it was followed by a flush and the closing of a door.

Troy let out a breath.

He looked to the left of him on the luminous red alarm clock that read it was 4 am. He didn't even realise how much time had gone by. Gabriella had cried for about an hour and then she had fallen asleep in his arms. And he wouldn't have had it any other way. He didn't encourage her to stop crying, he just let her lean on him for support and let her tears eventually subside. It broke his heart to see her in so much pain. But a part of him knew that that was needed. She needed that to get better. She needed that to let go. She needed it to move forward.

Troy knew he would have to go soon, he had already heard the baby crying within the last hour or so, so he knew he had to get a move on soon if he wanted to go undetected by the household. But he didn't want things to change from the way they were now. If he could hold her in his arms forever it wouldn't have been long enough. After a few minutes had passed he felt Gabriella shift in his arms, and then she looked up at him with a sleepy glaze over her features. "I thought I'd dreamt it."

Troy smirked before kissing her forehead. "Dreamt what?"

Gabriella nuzzled her face back into his chest. "You being here." She replied in a raspy voice, as she had just woken up.

Troy chuckled lightly. "No. I'm here. Pinch yourself. It's real."

Gabriella giggled the laugh he loved so much. She was starting to sound like herself. And then her hand reached down to her other thin arm and pinched the skin lightly causing him to laugh. "I can't believe you did that."

Gabriella pushed his chest lightly before rolling from on top of his body, leaving the space empty and cold but it was soon replaced when her hand rested on his peck and her leg wrapped over his. He took the opportunity to circle his arm around her small body.

"I have to leave soon." He spoke disappointingly.

Gabriella groaned slightly before nuzzling her face to his chest again. "Can you do something for me?"

Troy nodded his head before placing his other hand on her stomach and started to trail his fingers slightly across the skin that was covered by the beige shirt. "Anything. You don't even have to ask."

"Can you come somewhere with me tomorrow?" She spoke in an innocent gentle voice.

"I told you, you don't even need to ask." He whispered before leaning down and connecting his lips with Gabriella's. Their lips moved in motion with one another before his tongue entered her mouth. Their tongues fought for domination before he pulled away before he got too entranced with her. "I have to go."

Gabriella sighed deeply and groaned in disappointment. "No. No you don't have to go."

"Oh but I do. I'll call you in the morning kay? You need to sleep." He gently pressed his lips to her forehead.

"Mmmmm." She murmured before pulling her body under the covers.

"Night baby."

* * *

Gabriella's eyes adjusted to the bright light that was shining through her window. She blinked a few times before opening her eyes fully. She suddenly felt better. She suddenly felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She gracefully walked down the stairs and as soon as she walked into the kitchen she was met by pairs of prying eyes.

"Morning sunshine." Phoebe commented. "Sleep well?" She asked with a slight smirk on her face.

Something was going on.

Gabriella nodded her spherical head before walking over to where Dan was holding Emma and she quickly took her from his arms and started to smile in her face.

"Gabriella we need to talk." Cheryl almost laughed while she opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water.

"About what...." Gabriella replied distantly as she went and picked up the bottle of water that Cheryl was drinking from.

"Do you need to go on the pill?" Cheryl asked with a cheery and unserious tone to her voice. She almost sounded like she was.... joking.

Gabriella almost choked on the water that was in her mouth and she started to cough uncontrollably. "What?"

"Well Troy was here last night and don't you even try to deny it." Cheryl added more forcefully and pointed towards Gabriella.

"I..... I.... sorry?" Gabriella replied as if it was what they were looking for. "I didn't know he was coming I swear."

"Sweetie it's okay. We just don't want you to lie okay?" Alyssa chimed in from nowhere. Gabriella felt embarassed. She felt more than embarassed. She also felt guilty. She had never had to lie to her sisters before and she had just started. She wouldn't have done it intentionally but she just didn't want her family to think that she was a total slut who let Troy come around and she would have sex with him, actually a better word for it was a booty call. She wasn't like that.

"We never had sex." Gabriella commented quitely.

Phoebe chuckled from the corner of the room. "Honey we know you're not having sex."

"Anyways changing the subject from sex. While I'm here. What are you doing today Gabriella?" Dan enquired before walking over and grabbing Emma from Gabriella's arms.

"Um, actually. Cheryl can I lend your car? I just I have some things to do. I might not be home until tomorrow so don't worry about me kay?" Gabriella propositioned.

Cheryl gave Gabriella a weary nod. "Yeah I guess that's okay. Why what do you have to do?"

"I have to solve things once and for all. It's the only way."

And that's what she was going to do.

With Troy right by her side.


	30. With Or Without You

**Authors Note: Just like to say thank you for all of the reviews and support, I really appreciate it! I worked really hard on this chapter so I hope that you can tell! It's longer than the last chapter so I hope you all like it. Another thing I'd like to ask you all would you want an epilogue at the end of the story? I've hoped to write one but its up to you. So let me know in a review or pm :) Happy reading! **

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_"I don't care anymore about looking perfect, it's so overrated! I don't need a nose job or blond hair, cos my sex-god boyfriend likes me JUST the way I am!"_  
Georgia Nicholson: Angus thongs + perfect snogging

* * *

"So are you sure you want to do this?"

Troy's voice echoed through her ears. Her heart was pounding; she could feel the echoes of it onto her chest as she pressed her foot further down onto the gas to drive the car. Her nerves were escalating. She wasn't sure that she wanted to do this. But was she sure that she had to. 100 per cent.

Gabriella deeply sighed. Not shifting her gaze from the road to see her boyfriend staring at her with concern. But also content written all over his flawless face. Gabriella felt sick. She hadn't eaten anything that morning, after her 'pill' talk with the family she went to get ready and hit the road straight away. They were 5 minutes into their journey and Gabriella just wanted to turn back. She felt like she had to.

"Not really." She reached up to place her hand into her hair and she began to itch it mercilessly.

"We don't have to do this y'know. We can turn back." Troy motioned his hand out of the back of the car. The rain was pelting down onto the hard metal of the silver mini. The windscreen wipers were swiping the rain away making it hard for her to see.

"No. No" She replied quickly. "I have to do this. This is gonna help me so." She then pressed the brake to stop at some traffic lights and turned to look at Troy. "Don't you wanna help me?" She attempted to flirt but her nerves were getting the better of her.

Troy smirked and grabbed the hand that was rested onto the gear leaver and pressed it to his lips. "You know I do. Anyway I can."

Gabriella smiled graciously at him and then pressed her foot back on the gas feeling the car start to motion again. "Good."

"So it's always baffled me. Why don't you have a car?" Troy interrogated and Gabriella giggled a little. She didn't notice the way he glanced at her like she was crazy.

"Well. When we lived in San Francisco. Emma bought me a um a beetle. For my 16th birthday, well I think they all put together and bought me it but anyways. I was out one night y'know minding my own business. Driving like you do. I never was a good driver anyways, and I was coming out of a road and I kinda turned the wheel too much and ran into a pole." Gabriella laughed at the memory how they were all so mad at her for crashing the car. But were still happy that she was okay.

"But Phoebe had a beetle now right?" Troy observed the beetle that Phoebe had claimed.

"Uh huh. After it got fixed and everything they took it away from me and gave it to Phoebe." Gabriella informed him casually. Troy's hand gingerly came to rest on the top of hers that was rested on the gear leaver.

"And I'm putting my life in your hands when I've just learned you're a terrible driver." Troy cried in a joking manor but Gabriella sensed the panic in his voice.

"I can drive you home if you want?" She laughed.

"No. No it's okay. Besides this is the way I wanna go." He pulled up her hand again and kissed the back of her hand sweetly.

Gabriella giggled lightly. "What? In a borrowed car at the hand of your girlfriends horrific driving?"

Troy chuckled. "No. I wanna go with you at my side."

Gabriella smiled brightly and felt the butterflies hit in her stomach. "Aw you're so sweet."

"So where's the other place we're going to today? After we go to where we're going now?" Troy reeled off quickly.

Gabriella raised her eyebrows. "You'll see."

"But wherever it is we're not back until tomorrow?" Troy wiggled his eyebrows up and down causing Gabriella to giggle.

"I just... really need you there." Gabriella admitted glancing away from the road for a second to look into the azure pools that were shooting out rounds of love; he nodded his head slowly and then smiled tightly at her.

"And I'll be there." He replied before looking out of the misty window to look at the rain that was pelting down onto the ground.

"I had the sex talk this morning." Gabriella blurted out quickly before closing her eyes in embarrassment and giggling like a little 10 year old who had heard the word 'boobies'.

"Funny." He commented, Gabriella looked in his direction to see a smug smirk on his tanned face.

"What's funny?" Gabriella inquired her forehead crinkling in confusion.

"So did I." He admitted before chuckling again.

"Oh my god. What did they say?" Gabriella's eyes were the size of moons as she had looked off the road for a long time to stare at Troy who was laughing mercilessly. His hand was resting on his stomach. "Your mom and dad think I'm a slut."

"They don't think you're a slut." He reassured her. "I just told them that we were heading out of town and they were like now Troy you do have protection don't you we don't need to talk about the birds and the bees."

Gabriella closed her eyes in embarrassment and felt her cheeks warm up to a sweltering red as she let out a stray giggle, like a nervous giggle. "Oh my god." Gabriella hit the brake to stop at the traffic lights. "But your mom and dad know that you're not a virgin right?"

After Gabriella had learnt that Troy's last girlfriend was called Lauren, they had sat down and spoke about their pasts and their relationships. Gabriella hadn't had much to say because she had explained it all to him about Luke and how they broke up but Gabriella had learnt Troy and Lauren had had sex, he had said that they were at a party drunk and it just happened, and that Lauren had told him that she had convinced him that it was going to solve their problems. But obviously it hadn't.

Troy laughed slightly causing Gabriella to frown. "What did you think I did? Went home from that party and said hey mom, dad. I had sex tonight. Now I'm a man."

Gabriella's hand left the steering wheel momentarily and playfully smacked him on the arm. "Well obviously not, but I told my sisters when me and Luke started doing stuff." Gabriella mumbled.

"What so you just came out with it?" Troy sounded stunned. Like he couldn't get his mind around it. That was the funny thing with the two of them, neither felt uncomfortable when talking about each other's exes. Troy had told her that it was the two of them that were together now and the past was the past. And obviously he was right.

"Well you've got to remember me and my sisters are close right. And obviously they've been teenagers not so long ago. So we were once sat eating dinner. Just Me, Alyssa, Phoebe, Cheryl and Emma. And Alyssa made us burgers. So we were sitting there eating. And then Emma just said so Gabi, have you and Luke had sex yet." Gabriella started laughing at the memory. "So I practically spat out my food and was choking so obviously I said no. And then they were just saying well what have you done so I told them. I think it was the most embarrassing night of my life. It also made it easier when I told them about what he did though. So it was a winning situation really."

Troy narrowed his brow in confusion. "What it was a good situation that you went out with a dick that hit you?"

Gabriella winced a little at his words before giggling a little. "Okay maybe it wasn't the best situation........ Here we are." Gabriella sighed as she turned to the tall hotel that she knew he was staying at.

And by him she meant her father.

She had to do this.

"You okay? I don't have to come in with you if you want?" Troy gestured in a gentle voice.

Gabriella turned the key in the ignition to turn off the engine of the car as she looked towards him. "No. I want you there."

Troy nodded before gingerly leaning over and pressing his lips to hers. Gabriella sighed into the kiss and closed her eyes momentarily lingering close to him before smiling she knew that the message of the kiss was that _I'm here for you. _

"Let's do this."

Gabriella and Troy walked in unison with each other, Gabriella was holding onto his hand for dear life as they walked to the familiar room. She had asked at the reception if he was still staying here and he was. Gabriella halted at the maple coloured door, and tapped onto it lightly. Troy then took the opportunity to stand behind Gabriella and hug her from behind. And then the door opened again and Gabriella's teeth sunk into her bottom lip so quick that she thought it was going to draw blood.

"Gabriella I didn't....." He sounded dumb-founded and looked shocked, so shocked like he had seen a ghost. Gabriella had no idea about the disagreement that Troy and her father had had after she had performed last night. "I wasn't expecting you. Come in."

Gabriella walked into the room and was hit with the familiar scent that she had lost all that time ago after he had left.

"Do you want something or? I just never expected you to come."

Gabriella shook her head. She didn't feel angry, she didn't feel upset. She just felt content. She didn't know why but she did. "I'm fine thank you, Victor." Gabriella addressed him by his first name and at that moment he looked up to meet her coffee gaze and his eyes closed as if he was in pain, he then opened his eyes and Gabriella was hit by a wave of regret. She could see it written all over his face, guilt too. But that didn't change anything. "I just. I came here to talk to you actually. Not shout. Not scream. Just to talk."

Victor motioned towards the couch, but Gabriella shook her head. "No I'm fine thank you."

"So you wanted to talk. Let's talk."

Gabriella took a deep breath and looked at Troy who gave her a reassuring smile as she started to twiddle with her thumbs. "Okay so, I've basically come here today to tell you what my life has been like without a father. Without you."

"Okay." He replied bluntly.

"When you left, I didn't really. I couldn't understand. But hey I was only what 3? Totally beside the point." She knew she was rambling but that was because she was nervous. "My sisters obviously they knew what you'd done they knew you weren't coming back. But I didn't. I used to sit on the window ledge and look outside and pray that somewhere deep down that you were doing to come back. I used to sit for hours in the rain. Y'know like we used to?"

Victor kept his head down to the floor but looked up when she said that. "You remember that?"

Gabriella smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We used to drink hot chocolate and sit on the window ledge and watch the rain. It was the only thing I really had to hold on to."

Then he looked down to the floor again.

"Anyways so as I grew up I got curious y'know I wanted to know why. I had to know why. I would ask grams all of the time for some kind of contact and she would say no I don't know. But because we had no mom, everybody had to step up their game a bit y'know? I mean grams took on mom and dad role, she'd take me to school she'd bake cookies for fun days at school. And with all of that she still managed to pay the bills. Keep a stable life for us. And then Emma, Alyssa, Phoebe and Cheryl all took the role of a mom too. To each other y'know. They were like a best friend aswell."

Gabriella could feel the swell of the lump in her throat as she felt the tears cloud her vision. "And then after we'd picked up and we were like a real family. We'd got over mom dying and got over you leaving. 3 years ago. She died. She had a heart attack and collapsed at the bottom of the stairs. 3 weeks before Alyssa was due to get married. Just 3 weeks. Our whole world fell apart. Alyssa nearly cancelled the wedding. But everybody stepped up their game again. Emma took on mom role like she always did. And everything else fell into place again. We got over it as a family."

A lone tear strolled down her face, but she wiped it away quickly. "And then disaster struck again. I had this boyfriend. And for a while things were going fine. And then he hit me." She looked down to the floor, as if she was ashamed of what had happened. But she wasn't. It wasn't her fault. "I remember coming home that night and crying so much. Emma put her arms around me and then her and Dan went to his house and said to him if he ever came near me or my family again. It'd be the last thing he ever did."

"Uh, she sounded like a pretty great woman." Victor said awkwardly.

Gabriella smiled softly. "She was. And then that day. The week after me and Luke broke up. We were in the garden. We were sunbathing. It was the beginning of summer and even though my break up with Luke was still raw. It didn't matter. Me and Emma were together. She told me to go upstairs to get her phonebook the last words she said to me was yeah sweetie I can handle it. 10 minutes later no make it 5 she was stone cold dead on the floor. Guess what happened then? My whole world fell apart. Not just Alyssa's and Phoebe's and Cheryl's, My whole world fell apart."

The tears were streaming mercilessly down her face. She couldn't stop them now. It wasn't tears of pain though; it was pain of finally letting go. Of finally getting over it or trying to. "After that day, I fell apart. I wouldn't go to school. I barely even left my room. The funeral was the worst though when Grams died I couldn't get my head around it. But even more so when Emma died. We buried her in a white coffin y'know. I'll always remember it. It had gold on it. But that's beside the point. As soon as the lowered that coffin into the ground and I thought why would you do that. You lower somebody in the ground and their there under all of that dirt for eternity. I just, I couldn't grasp it. But then I thought you know what? Maybe my dad will show up maybe he'll think I've lost my daughter, he'll be there. But you weren't."

"Gabriella I...." Victor began.

Gabriella held her hand up to silence him. "Wait I'm not finished. Um, after that. When things finally decided to pick up we had to walk along the street and hear the whispers of people saying yeah that's them. Their sister was murdered. And then we moved here. To escape it all. To have a new start. But then it all caught up with us again. But to compensate for all of the crap for all of the absentee father crap, for all of the pain, for all of the tears, I guess what I came to say is I don't hate you. I thought that I did. But I don't. I came to say thank you. I never actually thought I would."

Victor looked up into Gabriella's eyes with tears clouding his vision. "People thought I'd pulled the short straw, that I was somehow deprived. And maybe I was. Maybe I didn't have a mother or a father. But I had them. Grams, Phoebe, Cheryl, Alyssa and Emma. They gave me the best kind of life I could have ever imagined. And now I have Dan and Lucas and Emma again and Troy. I have a life now. I've built a life. And I don't mean this to sound nasty because I'm not that person but my life doesn't have you in it. I don't know. Maybe we could work something out maybe we could see each other, get to know each other but I'm not promising anything."

For the first time in the whole conversation Victor actually looked genuine, he had a smile on his face. "I'd like that."

Gabriella smiled tightly. "But I want you to know that I'm stubborn and I'm independent. But I'm learning from that. And I have a big heart. A really big heart and it hurts when those people that I love aren't there anymore like Emma and Grams, and you. But maybe sometime I could find a way to let you back into my heart."

"I'd like that."

"That's good. I have things to do now. So.... I'll see you around."

* * *

"I'm really proud of you."

Gabriella shrugged lazily. "You know what? I'm proud of me too."

The weather had brightened up and Troy had his arm wrapped around Gabriella's back so she was stuck securely into his side as her head slouched onto his shoulder slightly. The two of them were walking through streets. Gabriella knew the place well.

"So where are we going? I mean I have a pretty good idea but..."

Suddenly she stopped in her steps and turned to the side, causing Troy to frown. Suddenly she felt it all come back to her. The pain, the memories, the happiness. The house hadn't changed much. "There are different cars in the driveway." She murmured.

Troy frowned a little and placed his arms around her from behind. "What do you mean?"

Gabriella looked at the house. She could see where her and her father sat watching the rain when she was a child and she was sure she could see through the front door and see where she saw Emma's lifeless body lay on the floor. "This is where we used to live."

Troy cleared his throat from behind Gabriella and began to rub soothing circles on her hips. Troy had been unaware that Gabriella was bringing him here; she thought that if she told him then he might discourage her from going. But she had to do this. She needed to do it. Otherwise she would never start to let it go. To start to get over it. "It's nice."

"It's different." Gabriella solemnly stated, she paused before leaning further back into Troy's chest; his chin came to rest onto the top of her head. "There's different plants. I hated the plants we had."

Troy nuzzled his head into her hair and kissed the mass of black locks infront of him. "Why?"

Gabriella giggled lightly at the memory. "Because Emma planted them. And she would be out here for hours and hours, and I got jealous. Yeah me jealous of plants."

"I hope you don't get jealous with me." Troy attempted to flirt.

Gabriella shook her head. "Nope. I was only like eight at the time. I was such an attention seeking bitch."

"So where too now?"

"Troy. I'd um, I'd like for you to meet someone."

Gabriella held Troy's hand and led him through all of the long grass. Her voice was quivering, swells of emotion were falling down onto her small body. She felt like she had to fall to the ground just so she wouldn't fall herself. She didn't feel stable. Gabriella's grip on Troy's hand was deadly. She felt like she was squeezing too hard, too hard that it was going to fall off. Troy's fingers were lightly caressing her knuckles that had turned white from the tight grip she had. "I've never been here before."

"But somehow you know where you're going?" Troy asked, his voice laced with confusion.

"Alyssa told me this morning." She shrugged before pausing for a few seconds. "And I kinda feel like I know where I'm going. It's totally weird. But I guess here we are."

Gabriella stopped in her steps feeling Troy stand behind her. Gabriella looked down onto the ground to the headstone. "I kinda don't know what to say." She looked behind her where Troy was looking down towards the ground. "She told me about you."

Troy frowned, his flawless face scrunching together as he looked up to Gabriella's face that was stained with pain. "What do you mean?"

"Well she never actually said you're gonna meet Troy Bolton. But the day that she died, we were sat talking and obviously I thought my break up was still raw with Luke and she was saying it to make me feel better. And she said to me, One day. And something tells me it's gonna be sometime soon, you're gonna find a guy who's gonna worship you. He'll practically kiss your feet y'know that right? And he's gonna be the best boyfriend you'll ever have. He'll be a keeper." She quoted.

Troy smiled tightly, his dimples visible through his cheeks. "I don't kiss your feet." He explained slowly.

Gabriella smiled brightly and let a small laugh escape before she looked at the gravestone. She walked closer and knelt down to the ground. Her fingers lightly traced the grooves of the gold plated writing. "She would've liked you y'know."

"Yeah?" Troy casually sat down beside Gabriella but a few feet away so he wasn't invading her space. "She wouldn't have gone all.... dad on me would she?"

Gabriella laughed. "Okay maybe at first she would've gone all daddish on you. All of the 'so what are your intensions with my baby sister'" She impersonated in a deep voice causing the two of them to laugh solemnly. "But then I think you would have stolen her heart." She then looked sideways at the guy that she loved and connected eyes with him. "Just like you stole mine."

Troy leaned over and connected their hands together. Her fingers falling into the gaps between his. "I don't really know what to say to her." Gabriella admitted with a small shrug of her shoulders.

"You want me to leave you alone?" Troy gestured.

Gabriella shook her head quickly. "No. No. You never got to meet her in person so I want you meet her now. So I guess I should just talk to her shouldn't I? I'm not used to this."

Troy smiled sincerely before kissing the back of her hand but then letting it go. "Just talk to her like you would."

"Okay." Gabriella sniffled. She wasn't going to cry. She was tired of crying. "Hey Emma. It's me. Listen I um, I'm really sorry. That I haven't been to see you. I just I guess that I thought if I did come to see you then I'd have to really accept the fact that you're gone and until now I don't think I could've handled that. But I'm here now and I just wanna tell you that I miss you. It was hard at first and it still is living without you. But I'm hoping that now it'll start to get better. You remember when you told me that I was gonna find someone. Well I have and he's here now. It sucks that you didn't get to meet him. But somehow I hope that you're with me somehow and you know that he's not a jerk. Just like you said he wouldn't be."

Gabriella turned to Troy to see him smiling encouragingly at her. "Anyway. I um, I have some things that I have to do so I'm going home tomorrow, somewhere where you should be but I guess I'll have to let it go. But I'm gonna come by tomorrow morning before I go home. And I promise that I'll come by more. I know you're probably up there thinking she doesn't care anymore. But I do, I really do. So I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Gabriella paused for a few seconds, looking at the ground. Then she looked up to meet the grave again. "I love you."

"You wanna leave?" Troy sensually asked her.

Gabriella shook her head. "I just wanna sit, for a while. Is that okay with you?"

And that's what they did.


	31. Feel This

_"People shouldn't experience the act of love until they are in love."_

Annette: Cruel intentions

* * *

Troy felt Gabriella's small body lean into his built chest. He knew that she was tired, fatigued. But more so he knew that she was emotionally tired. Emotionally tired, and finally letting go. He knew she was sorting out the thoughts in her head. He had never felt so proud of her. At first he hadn't thought that she would have been able to go through with it. Talking to her father and then facing the fact that Emma was actually gone. He thought it would have destroyed her, but she didn't cry, she hadn't cried in the whole time they had been out, just a few stray tears when she had been talking to her dad and Emma. It seemed to him like she was all cried out. And he knew things were going to be hard for her now especially because it was leading up to Christmas, he knew it was going to be harder for her to enjoy it since Emma wasn't there.

He just wanted to make things magical for her. He had bought her the perfect Christmas present that weekend before and he had planned to give it to her on Christmas day, he wanted to see her open it and see the look on her face, he didn't want her to open it at home without him there. He had never had a girlfriend at Christmas before so he wanted this to be amazing for her. He wanted it to be their first Christmas to set up the rest of their Christmas's together. To start a good trend.

"Gabi?" Troy called for her, in a gentle tone.

"Hmmm." Gabriella responded tiredly.

"What are you thinking about?" Troy's asked.

He knew that the possibilities were endless as to what she was thinking about. If he would have asked her the same question before he was terrified that she would have said he would have thought she would have said that she didn't want to be with him anymore. But now she had dealt with everything, she was leaning on him for support wasn't she? She was leaning on him for strength he knew that she wasn't going to get over things in the blink of an eye but he wanted this to be a good start.

"Just stuff." Gabriella replied slowly.

Troy had offered to drive after they had left the cemetery. He didn't want her to drive while she wasn't feeling too good. He knew that she wasn't feeling as crappy as she was before but he didn't want "Wanna talk about it?" He asked gently, while her head was resting on his built shoulder.

She shook her head slightly. "Have you got me something for Christmas yet?"

Troy frowned at the question. He hadn't expected that at all. But he knew that she was unpredictable, that was one of the reasons why he loved her so much. "That's what's on your mind?"

She took in a small breath before leaning over to the hand that was draped just over her shoulder and pressed her lips to it. "Among other things."

"Yeah I have." He replied slowly, closing his eyes almost painfully, awaiting her reply.

Gabriella's eyebrows rose. She wiped her eyes using the back of her palm in the adorable way that he loved. "You don't have to buy me anything." Troy said, and he genuinely meant it. "I know you've had alot on."

Gabriella scoffed. "Oh shut up. As if I'm not gonna buy you anything do you really think I'm that mean? And that self centred?" She asked with a smirk written onto her face. "Oh and by the way I've already spoken to your mom." She added playfully before nudging him slightly in the ribs.

"Sneaky little devil." Troy flirtingly announced before nudging her in the ribs playfully in return.

Gabriella's mouth hung open stupidly before she made a slight squeal. "I'm your sneaky little devil." She leaned in and pressed her lips to his temple that was covered by his chestnut coloured hair.

"As long as you're only my little sneaky devil." Troy smirked while not taking his eyes from the road.

Gabriella smiled blissfully. "So what are the plans for Christmas? Do I give you your present tomorrow, or the day after Christmas? You know whatever's cool." She shrugged her shoulders slowly.

Troy turned to look at her with a stunning smile on his face. "No." He answered simply.

What? Gabriella's black eyebrows narrowed in confusion. Her whole face scrunching like a paper bag. "Well whenever you can is good." She shrugged again.

Troy smirked at her adorable confusion. He knew she must have been a little confused and a little hurt that she thought he didn't want to see her on Christmas. "No, you can come to my house or vice versa. I want to see you on Christmas day." He pressed his lips to the cushion of her black hair.

Gabriella looked up at him in adoration; a squeal erupted from her throat. This was his Gabriella, she was coming out now. She was on her way back to him and he couldn't have been happier. "Really?"

"Uh huh." He nodded his head slowly. With the other hand that Troy wasn't using for driving was massaging Gabriella's knuckles lovingly. "Is that okay with you?"

Gabriella nodded her head eagerly. "Yeah. Definitely."

"We'll figure it out babe." Gabriella's lips pushed against the golden skin that was hidden through Troy's shirt on his shoulder. His fingers started lightly caressing the olive skin on her thin arm. "So are you excited for Christmas?"

Gabriella shrugged lazily. "I don't know really. It's gonna be different. Without Emma. But I have you to help me through it right?" He knew that she just needed reassurance. It was moments like this where she showed how vulnerable she was. How much she needed someone. How much she needed to know he was there.

"I'm always gonna be there for you, promise." Troy replied.

"Always?" She asked in a child like voice. Deep down he knew the meaning of what she had said, _not everybody's always been there for me can you promise you're gonna be the same? _But the answer was he couldn't promise that. But he could try and keep the promise. He could be there throughout her life trying to be there for her, helping her every step of the way. But he didn't know what fate and road life had him on. Weather he was going to be hit by a bus tomorrow or die old in his sleep, hopefully.

"Always." He reassured her, promising her. His lips found hers while they were pulled up at a traffic light for a sweet tender kiss.

As if they were sealing the deal.

* * *

Gabriella was dressed in a coffee coloured cami and a pair of plaid shorts. Her body was curled up to Troy's tightly as his arm was wrapped protectively his hand caressing the skin that was on her hips. The two of them were watching a movie; she didn't even know which one it was, she knew that neither of their minds was on the movie. "What are you thinking about?" Gabriella imitated the question that he had asked her earlier on that day.

Troy chuckled lightly knowing that she was imitating him. "Just stuff." He imitated.

Gabriella giggled before nudging him lightly in the ribs and looking up into his golden face, the azure orbs were boring down into hers. Love was spilling out around the room, love entering her whole body causing her toes to turn. It was overwhelming. "No seriously."

"I'm just thinking about how I take things for granted." He answered simply, shrugging his shoulders in the process.

What was he talking about? Gabriella's thin eyebrows furrowed curiously. "What do you mean?"

"I don't mean for this to be a dig at you or anything because I know you have a family. But I just take it all for granted." Troy answered solemnly.

Gabriella smiled blissfully at the adorable childlike nature of her boyfriend. Her fingers started to trail up and down Troy's white vest, wanting to see what was underneath. "After Emma died and I crawled out of my little hole." She chuckled at her own joke. "It made me really realise how much I loved my sister's y'know? And how much I really took for granted how much they were there. So now I... don't. Well not as much."

Troy kissed her forehead lovingly. "And that's why I love you so much."

"I love you." Gabriella informed him while her fingers were still dancing over the material that covered his skin. But then she decided to move the vest out of the way and her fingers started to waltz over the bare golden skin, rippling over his abs. She smiled as Troy suctioned in a breath at the sudden change of her movements.

"I love you too. More than anything."

Troy then leaned down and connected their lips together. But it wasn't a sensual kiss. Gabriella deepened it, her own hunger was evident and Troy responded by pushing her body back fiercely, his body was now rested on top of hers. The kiss changed, his mouth was attacking her own and Gabriella wasn't complaining. Her hands began to roam up the muscles in his back and she felt him tremble beneath her fingertips.

Gabriella didn't have time to think as the soft cushion behind her was ripped away and her body was in Troy's arms, her legs wrapped around his torso tightly and her arms around his neck. Her mouth still attached to his. Troy's hands were wrapped securely around her and were resting on the skin on the small of her back. She didn't know where Troy was carrying her until she felt her back connect with a spongy material, that Gabriella knew was a mattress.

Now Troy's tongue didn't waste any time in forcing its way into her mouth by prying her lips apart, and duelling with her own. Fireworks were exploding inside of her body as troy was hovering over her, his elbows propping him up so he didn't squash her with his weight. The light was dimming outside as the sun was setting creating a crimson colour amongst the sky that was coming in through the window.

Troy didn't waste any time to rip air away from her as he ripped the shirt she was wearing over her head leaving her in the neon pink coloured bra. His lips then detached from hers and he started to kiss the flesh, his lips attacked her neck and began to suck and lick gentle evoking sparks all over her body. Her back arched a little. "Oh god..." She moaned. Gabriella's fingers attached themselves to the muscle in the top of his back and she started to trail them over his tense muscles. That was covered by the damn vest.

Damn him.

Her fingers ferociously gripped at the bottom of his vest and pulled it over his head and left it forgotten on the floor. After this Troy lifted her back up tenderly while he unhooked the back of her bra and gently trailed it down the olive skin that covered her arms. Tickling over the hairs on her skin causing them to stand on end. His lips then worked down onto her chest kissing every inch of skin he could find, until he found the mound of her breast. His mouth started to suck and then it found her already erect nipple as his teeth flicked over the nub of it. "Troy Oh my God..." She moaned.

His hand moved to her other breast and started to caress and knead slightly, giving it the attention it wanted. Then his lips trailed down to her stomach and started to kiss his way down to the waistline of her shorts, he didn't waste any time in bringing them down and then leaving them forgotten on the floor. Gabriella's sex was already becoming wet with desire. Her body was writhing in anticipation. Troy was still wearing grey sweats, and his lips started to kiss up her left foot and continued kissing up her leg up to her thighs until he was met by her black lace panties that tickled her skin causing her to shiver slightly until they were laid forgotten on the floor.

"Troy." Gabriella whispered.

Troy's lips were now secured onto her flat stomach, but he looked up when he heard her call his name, "yeah baby?"

"You're wearing too many clothes." Gabriella whispered humour laced in her tone causing Troy to look down at his sweats as if he had forgotten that they were there.

"Strip me then." Gabriella giggled slightly before her fingers reached down and grabbed the hem of his sweatpants pulling them down and she used her legs to help her to bring them down and she left them on the bottom of the bed, forgotten.

Troy's hand then trailed over each of her soaking folds causing Gabriella to moan loudly and her back arched like a feline, she needed stimulation, she didn't want it. Needed it. Anything. "Troy..."

She began to wiggle her hips to try and bring his attention down to her organ that needed stimulating. Troy chuckled slightly. "What do you want?"

Gabriella was whimpering as his hands were still teasing her. "Troy." She whined, while pleasure was raging up and down her spine but she needed it. She needed something. "Please..."

Troy seemed to be satisfied as two fingers entered her body. Gabriella's eyes slammed shut and a scream of pleasure. Her arms stretched out to the pillows that were at either side of her as she was lying in the middle of the bed. She squeezed the pillows to try and calm herself down but it wasn't working. His fingers were working magically in and out of her body and sweat was collecting on her face. Her head had risen, her whole body was writhing. She could feel the liquid of desire trickling down her legs, around Troy's fingers.

The pressure was building around her navel; deep inside of her. Gabriella's fingers were massaging his scalp, pulling at his hair, pulling so hard that she thought she was going to pull it out. "Troy I'm gonna...." She began breathlessly, Troy looked up to her and nodded silently knowing what was going to happen.

And then it did.

Orgasmic bliss slammed into her. "TROY!" She screamed, she had never felt anything so intense, it was like she was letting go of all of the stress as she screamed his name. Weird? Yeah, she knew. But as she lay on the bed her chest rising up and down at a unhealthy rate. But as soon as she caught her breath she looked to the side to see her hand laced with Troy's, she hadn't even noticed that he had done so. "Troy?"

Troy kissed the back of her hand that he was holding. "Yeah?"

"I um.... I want you..." She responded shyly, her head floating to the side so that she didn't have to stare at his face. She heard him sigh from next to her. No. He didn't want this. She could tell. She knew that he wanted her she could evidently see that through the bulge in his boxers. But he didn't want her.

"You're sure?" Gabriella turned her head sharply, to see him staring down at her with concern. "I don't want you to regret anything."

"I want this." She spoke genuinely, Gabriella stared directly into his eyes, and her mocha eyes were filled with all of the love in the world. Right there and then a sense of belonging washed over her. Not belonging in the hotel room. But belonging to Troy, and there and then she had the first sense ever since Emma died that everything was going to turn out okay.

Troy had sweat glistening on his head and Gabriella knew that he was suppressing trying things on with her. He smiled brightly and instantly rolled back on top of her, his arms supporting his weight from her and kissed her fiercely again. She started to run her hands up his bare back that were starting to dampen from the sweat his flawless body was producing. They trailed down to the hem of his boxers where she pulled at the hem indicating to Troy what she wanted.

It was then she realized.

They were actually going to have sex. They would be connected so much more, would it make them stronger? She hoped so. She was giving away to Troy. Her first time. But she wouldn't have had it any other way. The feelings that she had for Troy were stronger than anything she had ever felt before. He was her everything.

Within a few minutes Troy had secured a neon aqua condom onto his length and he was hovering over Gabriella looking down into her eyes, spilling out with love. "I don't wanna hurt you." He admitted hanging his head down, looking down at their sweaty bodies.

"It's okay. I've dealt with worse." She attempted to joke; Troy smiled from above her and kissed the tip of her nose lightly.

"I love you" Troy mumbled

Gabriella smiled blissfully, while bracing her arms under his shoulders to prepare for the pain that she knew was going to come. "I love you too."

And with that Troy eased himself into her gently and the moment he was even the slightest bit inside of her he let out a groan. Although it wasn't like that for Gabriella, she felt a forced pain almost ripping from inside of her and she let out a muffled scream and closed her eyes forcefully, Troy stopped to allow Gabriella to adjust herself. She wasn't going to lie, it hurt. It was a physical pain that hurt almost more than anything she had ever felt before.

"You ok?" Troy asked out of concern although he was already panting and she could tell he was holding himself back.

Gabriella nodded although the pain was still there. "Yeah..." She whispered.

Troy gradually pushed himself quickly until he was fully inside of her. Both of their bodies were soaked, Gabriella chucked back her head; her soaked her trailing across the back of the pillow. Gabriella couldn't comprehend how complex their connection was, that he was inside of her body. They were connected, so much deeper than they were before. Their love had brought them together as two people, into one and she couldn't comprehend something more overwhelming.

Gabriella tried to put the pain at the back of her mind as she began to feel pleasure rippling through her small body, a moan slipped from her mouth as she began to become accustomed to accommodating Troy inside of her. His eyes were closed and his mouth was in the form of an O shape.

"Shit, Gab..." Troy groaned before he leaned down and pressed their lips together. Gabriella was breathless into the kiss. "Gabriella..." Her name rolled off of his tongue easily.

Gabriella could tell by the sound of Troy's erratic breathing what was coming. She could hear it in the way her name was echoing from the walls, but before he had a change to fully orgasm his hand reached down and pressed at her clitoris to meet his thrusts, she knew he was trying to get her further and she could feel the pressure building from somewhere deep inside of her. Deeper than anything she had ever felt before. "Troy..." She whimpered.

"You... su..sure you're okay?" He asked, she knew he was only being concerned for her and caring for her, one of the reasons she had fallen love with him.

Gabriella nodded quickly, before Troy's hips started to thrust faster and Gabriella could begin to feel the pain again, "Oh god Troy..." She moaned, the pleasure was overriding the pain she was feeling. She could feel it building inside of her all of the love for Troy, all of the waiting to finally do this with him. Gabriella slung her head back feeling fireworks and sparks running all the way through her body.

"TROY!" Gabriella felt like she was on cloud nine as she screamed Troy's name, and felt an orgasm that had never felt so intense.

"Shit Gabi oh....." Troy orgasm came from above her.

Gabriella's back gave out on her as she lay back onto the mattress, and Troy fell back on the top of her.

"Love you." He murmured before Gabriella opened her eyes and her hands gently stroked Troy's bare back. Him trembling beneath her.

Gabriella couldn't believe that they had actually done it. She had never thought that they would have so soon. She didn't think that they would have done it in a hotel room, it was completely unpredictable. "I love you." She replied breathlessly.

Troy slowly pulled out of her, unsheathing the condom from his limp member leaving Gabriella to catch her breath. "Did it hurt?" He asked before tenderly leaning down and pressing their lips together in a slow sensual kiss since neither had the energy to deepen it any further.

Gabriella nodded slightly. "A little."

The sweat that was previously on Gabriella's body was drying leaving her shivering.

"Cold?" Troy asked, whispering.

Gabriella nodded her heavy head as her eyelids began to droop closed. She suddenly felt a the covers cover her small body and her body shivered from the cold air that drifted down her frame.

"Night baby."

She heard him say before she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**A/N: Just a quick one guys :) Really really nervous about this chapter, something about it I just didn't like. So I hope you like it, and let me know your thoughts this is a chapter that means alot to me and I hope I've done it justice so let me know what you think! Thanks for all of the support it really keeps me going :)**


	32. Be Somebody

**A/N: Thanks for all of the feedback guys it means alot. Not alot to say about this chapter apart from I like the first part but then don't really like the last part but anyways its up to you guys. Let me know what you think. And just to let you know there is two more chapters after this one, it's still kinda weird that its all coming to an end really! And I am doing an epilogue so I hope you'll like it :) **

* * *

_"That's my sweetheart in there. Wherever she is, that's where my home is."_

Noah Calhoun: The Notebook

* * *

Gabriella was lying peacefully with Troy's arms wrapped around her. Her body was physically exhausted after what had occurred hours ago, she had fallen asleep for a few hours, she didn't know exactly how long she had been asleep for but she was awake now and just enjoying the sensuality of the moment that she was in. She heard the even breath that belonged to Troy and she knew he had fallen asleep. She knew that Troy could sleep forever so she didn't count on him waking up anytime soon. She couldn't believe that they had actually had sex. She had never felt anything like that before. Anything so intense. Her legs ached at that moment though, even though she didn't really do anything, but she felt an intense ache down in her lower body, where she wasn't stretched out yet.

But apart from that she wouldn't have traded anything or changed anything for the world.

She was absentmindedly drawing light circles on Troy's bare chest thinking about everything that had gone on the past month or so. How she had been depressed and not wanting to do or say anything to anyone and now she had come so far, she had almost become a different person. Never had she imagined she would have come to see Emma's grave and do it with Troy all in the same day.

Suddenly, she felt Troy shift in his sleep slightly and his grip tightened around her and then he relaxed slightly. She could imagine him opening his eyes at that moment in time before... "Morning..."

Gabriella giggled, although she didn't know why." Morning."

"You okay?" He asked with concern laced into his tone.

"Yeah, just tired. My legs burn." She complained.

Troy smirked from above her and kissed the frazzled hair infront of him. "Mine too." He whispered seductively.

She knew exactly what that tone of voice meant. "Hey, don't even try it mister I'm kinda sore." She confessed embarrassedly.

Troy closed his eyes at the comment in slight annoyance with himself before his arms started to rub her skin slightly, as if trying to make her better. "I'm really sorry. How did it feel?"

Gabriella had decided that she didn't want to lie to him, after all where had lying gotten her before, well not lying just not telling him about her father and her sister dying and all of that kinda stuff. "Um, at first. It hurt like hell, but after that it was good. It can only get better right?" She joked lightly.

Troy must have understood the double meaning, that things could only get better for her in the future. "You got that right babe."

"So if I tell you something you promise you won't hold it against me and laugh and make me squirm?" Gabriella grinned even though her body was too physically tired to smile.

"Okay I won't..." Troy announced slowly and warily.

"Okay so, when we first moved here and I started school, and I saw you and first of all I was like wow, and then when I thought about you I kinda had a little nickname for you." Gabriella announced her body squirming in embarrassment.

Troy chuckled slightly and pressed a kiss to her forehead gingerly, it seemed like he couldn't keep his arms or lips off of her. "Go on..."

Gabriella giggled her sweet laugh before nuzzling her face into his chest, feeling the warmth of his skin transfer onto her face. "I kinda called you Mr Perfection."

Troy chuckled, his stomach vibrated, Gabriella felt it on her skin. Gabriella closed her eyes and felt her face turn a shade of blood red. "Oh my god. You said you wouldn't laugh" Gabriella complained.

Troy was still chuckling. "I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing at the fact that I used to call you Miss. Stunning."

Gabriella began to laugh, her stomach vibrated as the loud giggle filled the room. "Oh no. Troy that's funny..." She managed to get out although there was a slight ache in her stomach from laughing.

"Hey, you had a nickname too." Troy confessed as Gabriella turned her body so she was lying directly on her flat stomach so she could look at Troy directly in his flawless face. Her hands began to tickle lightly on his chest as she felt him tremble beneath her. "Okay. So, what did you think when you first saw me?"

Gabriella nuzzled her nose slightly and let her hair fall infront of her face, letting it fall against Troy's tan skin. "I threw up in my mouth." Gabriella saw troy's face fall and his azure eyes transformed into puppy eyes that he knew she couldn't resist. Before she knew it Troy's hands fell down to the curve of her hips and his fingers started to tickle the skin causing uncontrollable giggles to emit from the back of her throat. "Okay I'm joking I'm joking." But he didn't stop. "I'm joking!" She called.

Troy was chuckling from above her and he stopped in his actions. "I'll tell you what I thought shall I?" Gabriella nodded intriguingly. "Okay, the moment I saw you in the cafeteria that day, I knew I'd be here at this moment." Gabriella's eyebrows rose at his cockiness. The smug little.... "My turn to joke, I thought oh my god. No joke either. You were wearing a black ribbed cami with some skinny jeans and you just looked so lost. And then I thought I've got to have her."

"You did not." Gabriella stated cockily with a hint of pink on her cheeks.

"Okay I was scared to talk to you but deep, deep, deep down I thought I've got to have her." Troy corrected himself with the cocky smirk on his face.

"Awe." Gabriella cooed. "You lie." She commented with a playful hit to Troy's chest.

"I swear." Troy commented holding his hands up high as if he was 'surrendering'. "I'm glad you're okay though"

Gabriella frowned internally and externally. "What do you mean?"

"Just like from before. I just, I really wanted you to talk to me y'know..." He replied solemnly almost disappointedly.

Gabriella bit her bottom lip timidly. She had never intended to hurt him; she had never intended to keep things from him. Things had just worked out that way, her whole life had spiralled out of control and there was nothing that she could have done to stabilize it without taking time out on her own to sort herself out and gather her thoughts, realize how she really felt. And in that time she had realize that she had grown so attached to Troy, that she leant on him for everything and although it had taken her a while to realize that she had gotten there. And in a way she was glad. She had learnt more about herself and she had learnt that now she could depend on other people without becoming too attached. But with Troy it was different, right? "Troy I'm sorry. I'm depending on you now though, and believe it or not I still need you now."

Troy nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I know. And I'm glad that you do." His hand fell onto the curve of her back and he began to stroke soothingly. "So do you feel different?"

Gabriella smiled lazily. "What do you mean?" She asked with narrowed eyebrows.

"You know." Troy nodded his head. "After last night..."

Gabriella bit down on her bottom lip almost seductively and she could have sworn she heard Troy groan from above her. "I don't know." She answered amusedly. "I thought I would, I also thought that maybe I'd look different. But..." She paused shrugging her shoulders slightly. "What do you think? Do I look different?"

Troy burst into spontaneous laughter at Gabriella's answer; she hung her head down in embarrassment. "Hey don't laugh at me..."

Troy continued to laugh at Gabriella's efforts. "Continue laughing and I'll tell everyone you have a little problem." She almost sung, scrunching all of her fingers into a fist apart from her little finger which she started to bend, and then she began to giggle at her own joke.

"You would not." Troy stated, his eyes wide like saucers as if she was going to spread a rumour that he had problems in the bedroom, when he had anything but. Gabriella just began to bend her little finger with a coy smirk on her face. "Okay you have to stop smiling like that..."

Gabriella sat up slightly and Troy's body followed her, Gabriella began to lean back so her back was connecting with the sheets as Troy hovered over her. "Why?" Gabriella asked seductively, her teeth resting on her bottom lip. "C'mon tell me."

Troy threw his head back and groaned, his eyes close tightly. "You Miss Montez are a little tease."

Gabriella giggled uncontrollably while searching for his lips; the light was creeping in through the blinds making it easier for him to look at him. They kissed slowly and sensually seeing as in Gabriella didn't have the energy to do anything else, but Troy seemed to deepen the kiss and she managed to realize that he had at least some sleep that night. Gabriella moaned slightly and lazily. "Troy we have to stop." She pushed his chest playfully and she heard him groan.

"Why?" Troy smirked playfully.

"Because... we have to go home soon." She answered disappointedly.

"You don't want too?" Troy asked with concern and leaned down to kiss her lips tenderly.

Gabriella sighed deeply. "No it's not that, I just. I don't wanna turn into the person that I was, who really, really detested the idea of coming to see my sisters grave. I mean that's not what you should feel. And I don't wanna be like that again. I'm scared to turn into that girl."

Troy used his fingers to trail against hypnotically against her cheekbone causing sparks to erupt at the impact point. "You're not gonna turn into that girl, you have me and you have your sisters. You can come and see Emma's grave all you want, I'll drive you up here every weekend if that's what you want. So I don't have to feel like my life is in danger while your hands are on the wheel."

Gabriella laughed slightly. "Are you saying I'm a terrible driver?"

Troy smiled his crooked smirk while turning his head sideward's to look at her more. Gabriella could feel his eyes boring deep inside of her. "The worst." He whispered before connecting their lips together sensually. "Hey you remember all that time ago, the night I asked you out?"

Gabriella nodded coyly. "The night at the fairground?"

Troy nodded again slowly. "And we were on the wheel and you asked me what I felt like I was born for."

_This is simple. Close your eyes"_

_Troy obeyed her and closed his eyes and sighed deeply. "Look right back into your mind" She whispered, but even over the wind that was whipping over the two he seemed to close his eyes even tighter. "What do you feel like you're born for?"_

_Troy opened his eyes and Gabriella pulled her body from his embrace to look him in the eye. "Basketball, of course" _

_Gabriella smiled tightly and lowered herself back down onto Troy's waiting embrace. "Well there you go then"_

The memory played through her mind, she could remember the exact look on his face, the exact look in his eyes and the exact way she felt when he had told her. "Yeah." She replied.

"Well now I know that I was born for loving you."

Gabriella's hands traced the grooves of the grave again, it felt like she had never left. She felt awful that she had left. As soon as she had come back there she had felt a connection, like a sisterly pull to her. Like she had to be there. She placed down the lilies that she had bought on her way there to place down for her. "Hey, it's just me again."

Gabriella didn't know what to say, she wasn't used to having a conversation with somebody who wasn't there. Somebody who wasn't going to respond. She had spent some time reorganizing the flowers that had been there and she had read the cards that had been placed with the flowers which had brought a tear to her eye. The nice things people had said about her and Gabriella had been hit with a sudden wash of guilt, guilt that she hadn't been there. That, in nearly 11 months she hadn't been to see her sister. "I just wanted to let you know that now I'm gonna be here. I know you might hate me for not coming but I'm gonna be here now and I'm gonna bring you lilies every single time because they're your favourite flower. I'll even spend my last dollars on you. Aren't you the lucky one?" She attempted to lighten her mood but the tears were strolling freely down her face.

"Things are good at home. Alyssa has another baby now but I'm guessing that you already know that, and she's called Emma. And a part of me has been hoping that you've come back to us. Come back to me. I'll look after her, I promise. And I'll bring her to see you and make sure that she and Lucas know everything about their big Auntie Em." Gabriella chuckled slightly. "Auntie Em, huh like we're from Kansas now huh? And as for Troy, he's great. I um, this kinda feels weird when you're not gonna respond and give me a cocky reply like you always used to. But I really love him, and he's there for me in every way imaginable. And he's also helped me learn things about myself that I never knew before, like how stubborn I am."

Gabriella's hands fell down to the lilies to perfectly lay them around the grave. "But beside the good things. I really miss you. I just sometimes it's hard getting up in the morning to know you're not there, but I just sometimes want to know that you're there. Know that you're with me every day. So if you could do that, if you're here wherever you are." She looked around as if she was going to find the answers. "I could really use that. She said through a watery smile. "And if you are here I guess you'll know what happened last night. But don't worry because I know what you're like. It's all fine, everything's gonna be fine."

And for the first time Gabriella was finally starting to believe it.

"You had sex last night."

Shit. Shit. Double, triple shit.

She was busted.

Gabriella had just arrived home a couple of minutes ago, she had taken her bag upstairs into her bedroom and walked back down the stairs to talk to her sisters. Only they didn't say "Hi." They didn't say. "How was your trip?" All she got was "You had sex last night." Fan fucking tastic. Clearly she did look different. And there was a slight purple mark on her neck. It was a thin mark, but long. It had a violet rim around it and was pink and scarlet in the middle with slight teeth marks around it.

Damn her boyfriend for giving her a hickey.

She didn't look any different to herself. She had taken a curling iron with her to curl her hair and she had put on the same amount of makeup that she would usually wear, and she wore a pair of sweats and a vest. She didn't look any different, right? There was no such thing as an 'after sex glow'. She couldn't understand.

"What?" Gabriella asked defensively before walking over to the fridge and pulling out a pot of yoghurt and a bottle of water. She ran her hand up tiredly to her hair and felt her eyes droop slightly. She felt exhausted; her body was still aching as if she had just finished having sex, not over 12 hours ago, and she had also not had any sleep so that was an addition to the reasons why she should have stayed upstairs and gone to bed.

"You had sex last night." Phoebe commented as she looked down at the newspaper she was reading. She didn't even seem to lift her head as Gabriella had walked in through the door. She was busted.

"No I didn't." She denied. Now she was getting conscious. Did she smell of sex or something?

"Oh please. ALYSSA!" Phoebe shouted. Her brown hair had just fallen back over her shoulders as she looked at her younger sister. Now she didn't really want the interrogation. She was looking at her, inspecting her. She didn't like it. "COME IN HERE!"

There was an echo of footprints on the floor, followed by her eldest sister, her hair was curled unlike usual when it was just tied back as she didn't have time to do anything else. She had only been gone not even a day! What the hell was going on? She was wearing a peach coloured vest with a pair of skinny jeans. "What?"

Gabriella sat down on a stool although it kind of hurt her to do so, she winced slightly and hoped that it went unnoticed. "Gabriella had sex last night?"

"WHAT?" Alyssa exclaimed. "Gabriella did you?"

Her eye's enlarged, this couldn't happen what if they told Troy to stay away from her because they had had sex after such a short amount of time. "No" Gabriella's head shook rapidly although she didn't know what else to say.

"Oh please. You have the whole after sex glow thing. You went to a hotel. Why wouldn't you have sex? Your eyes are swollen from lack of sleep and also you just winced when you sat down." Gabriella's eyes closed. Shit. How did she know?

"Oh god..." Gabriella mumbled, placing her hands on her forehead, feeling a slight ache in her head.

"Well? Have you?" Alyssa interrogated.

Gabriella still shielded her head in her hands, as if someone was going to miraculously come and save her. "If I say yes will you hate me?"

Suddenly Phoebe dived up from the chair and ran over to where Gabriella was sitting. Her elbows leant onto the surface and she rested her rounded chin into her hands. Her deep brown eyes staring right through Gabriella as if she was trying to see what had gone on last night. "Oh my god, is he y'know. Equipped."

Gabriella looked at her sister alarmed. Gabriella heard Alyssa shriek in surprise. "Phoebe." She scolded behind a laugh.

"Well was he?" Phoebe pressed.

"Phoebe. You can't ask me that." Gabriella told her, her face was the colour of a tomato. She felt as though she was going to cry from embarrassment, her cheeks felt as if they were on fire.

"What was it like?" Alyssa asked, her ministrations still the same as Phoebe, her elbows rested on the counter and her chin rested on her hands.

"It was weird." Gabriella commented. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell them because she did, they deserved to know, she was getting her life back on track so she wanted to share the things with them that she would normally have done before.

"Good or bad?" Phoebe asked quickly, as if she couldn't get the words to spurt from her mouth quick enough.

"Good. I feel, I don't know more connected with him. Like I love him even more. And I know that you might..." Gabriella started but Alyssa held up her hand to silence her.

"I know exactly what you mean." Alyssa smirked the dimples in her cheeks visible. "Aw Gabi's all grown up now."

Gabriella playfully swatted the air at the two of them although she grinned brightly. Her teeth visible. Although her cheeks were the colour of a tomato. "Will you guys come Christmas shopping with me?"

"Of course. Best Christmas ever!"


	33. Stuck In Love With Each Other

**A/N: Hi again guys, just want to say thanks for the reviews and PM's they mean alot! And just want to say that this is the penultimate chapter and I just started writing it today and I couldn't stop. So it's abit longer than usual but again I hope you don't mind! As well as I hope you don't mind that I updated twice in two days. I just won't get a chance to post tomorrow, so the last chapter will be up in the next few days! Happy reading :) **

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_"I have another scenario for you - I'm in love with you. I apologize for the blunt delivery, but as problematic as this fact may be, I'm in love... with YOU. I'm not feeling this because you're leaving, and not because it feels good to feel this way... which, by the way, it does, or did before you went off like that. I can't figure out the mathematics of this, I just know I love you. I can't believe how many times I'm saying it! And I never thought I'd feel this way again, so that's pretty phenomenal. And I realize that I come as a package deal: 3 for the price of 1. I know my package, perhaps in the light of day, isn't all that wonderful, but I finally know what I want and that, in itself, is a miracle. And what I want is YOU."_

Graham Simpkins: The Holiday

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"So did you or didn't you?"

Gabriella's deep brown mocha eyes rolled obnoxiously behind her eyelids as she stood with her hands rested on her hips. Her hand delicately reached up to stroke along her itchy eyelid. Her teeth bit down on her bottom lip. What was she going to do? She didn't know whether troy wanted to say anything and all of the things Sharpay and Taylor had been saying to her was if she had had sex with Troy. Well they hadn't exactly asked the question they had just asked if anything happened.

"Did I what?" Gabriella asked stupidly, the good thing about Gabriella's past experiences was that she was a kind of good liar so she could have told the girls that she hadn't done anything with Troy that night or nothing had happened and they would believe her. After Emma had died and Gabriella had gotten herself back together she would still have days where she believed that she was truly going to die from the pain that was inside of her, it was like she was burning inside. And she had told everybody that she had been fine, and everyone had believed her. So in that way she was thankful that she was a good liar.

"Oh fuck Gabs, did you or did you not have sex with Troy last night?" Sharpay asked in her high pitched irritated voice. Gabriella had gone Christmas shopping that afternoon for an hour or so with her sisters and then she had agreed to meet the girls so they could go for some food, before Gabriella would go back to the hellhole that would be her house. Not that Gabriella didn't love being there but there was chaos about Christmas and the dinner that would be prepared and also the presents. Her sister's had always been ones to leave things to the last minute, so present wrapping would have probably been going on right about then. She was also embarrassed every time she was with them, when she had been walking around the mall with her sisters they had been constantly asking her questions about Troy, what he was like, if they used a condom and Phoebe had even asked how long it lasted.

Gabriella was not impressed at all.

"I'm not telling you." She replied cockily, raising her eyebrows in the process.. She had still felt a little bit sore but it wasn't as bad at that point, she was thankful because she didn't want her friends to realize and shout out like her Phoebe had told her whilst walking around the mall that she was walking like 'John Wayne', which had made her laugh but also made her the colour of a tomato. She had spent the full day with her face beetroot red because she was so embarrassed.

"What oh my god why?" Sharpay threw a tantrum like a three year old, her feet stomped down on the floor, and her eyes shut in the process as she spoke. "I think she did y'know Tay."

Taylor suddenly blinked a few times before focusing her almost black orbs on Sharpay. "Why do you think that?" She replied accompanied by a sigh, her eyes closing in slight annoyance.

"Because she said I'm not telling you. It's like something you'd say when you were five, like when someone would say to you do you know what sex means and you'd say yeah and they'd say what and you'd reply by saying well I'm not telling you." Sharpay blurted out without taking a breath.

"Shar, sweetie. What 5 year olds do you know that have sex?" Gabriella asked in amusement, with a slight scowl on her face.

"Well okay maybe a bad age group to be aimed at. I knew what sex was when I was 7." Sharpay informed the two of them, like they wanted to know, with a slight nod of the head, as if she was confirming that it was true.

"That explains alot then honey." Taylor said while pressing a pat to Sharpay's shoulder.

"Bitch." Sharpay mumbled but also quite amused. "Anyway speaking of sex, Gabriella did you?"

Gabriella suddenly felt her leg begin to vibrate, through her jeans. She didn't hear Sharpay's comment as she reached down into her pocket to look at the text message that had been sent to her. Her eyes lit up as soon as she saw that the sender was of course Troy.

_Just wrapped your Christmas present. Can't wait for you to see it. Miss you baby. _

Gabriella smiled brightly at the spontaneity of the text, and the 'Miss you baby' on the end, her heart soared but also ached at how much she missed him too. She had spent practically a full 24 hours with him and now she was aching without him. Funny how she didn't think she needed him and then she missed him just when she hadn't seen him for a couple of hours. Little did she know that Sharpay was hovering over her reading the text message.

"Okay so he's either saying miss you baby because he genuinely misses you or he misses you in a sexual kinda way so like he misses your..." Sharpay began. Gabriella turned to face Sharpay sharply and looked at her with a scowl on her face, of annoyance.

"Don't finish that sentence." Gabriella warned, holding up her pointer finger. "God Sharpay, you're like a dog with a bone wanting to know about my nonexistent or existent sex life." Gabriella added playfully, even if she didn't know whether to tell the girls she did love playing with their minds, especially Sharpay's because it was getting her so angry.

"Taylor, tell her." Sharpay whined, again like a baby.

"Sharpay." Taylor exclaimed a little loudly in annoyance. Causing Gabriella to giggle at how she had got Sharpay in trouble, it made her feel like a naughty school girl. She took the opportunity to text Troy back quickly and eagerly:

_Miss you too. Can't wait till tomorrow. I'm getting interrogated. No fun! _

She then quickly slid down the phone and placed it back into her jean covered pocket while Taylor was taking. "Look, if Gabriella doesn't want to tell you then she doesn't want to tell you. Get over it. You'll find out soon enough." Taylor then winked at Gabriella slightly making her on edge. What did that mean?

"What does that mean?" Gabriella asked panicked but with a lazy smile on her face.

"Guys talk." Taylor mustered up a cocky smirk and winked at Gabriella again.

Great.

So Troy was going to tell Chad and then he would tell Taylor. What was the fun in that? But then again she didn't intend on torturing Sharpay for that long. As if on cue Sharpay turned to Gabriella and stuck her tongue out at her playfully. "Ha" She exclaimed.

"Very seventeen year oldish Shar." Gabriella commented in amusement.

"Whatever. You still want a ride home?" Sharpay gestured.

It would have been convenient for Taylor to give her a ride home but seeing as in it was Christmas Taylor was staying with her mother's side of the family who lived on the other side of town and was having to leave to go and see them and seeing as in Gabriella was a terrible driver, she had asked Sharpay to take her home, not wanting her sisters to interrogate her anymore. "Definitely. If you don't mind."

Sharpay shook her head. "Not at all, come on let's get out of here."

Gabriella gathered her coat, placing it on and then she Sharpay's and Taylor's steps fell into sync with one another until they saw someone else crossing their path, right infront of the three of them. It was someone that she hadn't expected to ever talk to again.

"Can we talk?"

There Tara stood wearing a pair of jeans that were cuffed around the bottom that had light rips in and a tan coloured coat accompanied with a scarf.

"Fuck you." Sharpay spoke slowly as she walked forward in Tara's face. "How dare you?"

Gabriella wasn't one for confrontation but Tara was one girl that she really hated, someone that she couldn't walk past in the street without firing a round of daggers at.

"Look I just wanted to talk..." Tara said while looking down at the floor.

"So talk." Taylor instructed, her arms were folded over her chest. Gabriella was looking down at the floor twiddling with her thumbs.

"Look I know that I've hurt you. All three of you." She began but Gabriella couldn't take it any longer.

"Hurt us? You thought that you had to try and steal Taylor's boyfriend but when that didn't happen you told the whole school that Sharpay had an abortion and you told the whole school that my sister was murdered. If you think that's just hurt then you can think beyond hurt..." Gabriella began inching further to Tara with more or less every word she spoke.

"Try humiliated, tortured, been looked at like you're an alien and like you're a terrible person. Everybody knows your business before you've even had a chance to work it out on your own. That's how I felt..." Sharpay had to blink back the tears from what Gabriella could see, her own hand was shaking with venom, and she reached out for Sharpay's to silently let her know that it was okay.

"Look, I know that I hurt you. Or maybe hurt is an understatement, but I just wanted to say that i was sorry. I didn't realize how much I can hurt other people. It just, it's been on my mind for a while recently and I just wanted to apologize, I know it probably doesn't account for anything." Tara said solemnly, her eyes were locked trained to the ground as if she couldn't look up into either of their eyes.

"I still can't stand you." Sharpay stated.

Gabriella even smiled lazily. "Me neither." Taylor shook her head slightly.

Gabriella's nose crinkled up. "And you know what? Me neither."

And with that the three girls walked away, their arms in lock before Sharpay turned around with a sly smirk on her face and she held up her hand vertically before bending her fingers a few times. "Toodles."

"Ugh I hate her." Sharpay complained as they walked away.

No more than 15 minutes later Gabriella and Sharpay were sitting in her car which was going at a steady speed. Gabriella was sat in silence her gaze fixed on the road which was passing her by. She couldn't believe the nerve of Tara; yeah people were entitled to apologize but still she was one of the reasons that she had got herself into such a mess. But in a way she had to be thankful because she wouldn't be where she was at now. But she wasn't going to tell anybody else that.

Gabriella was glad that she had sorted herself out; she had become the person that she was before she lost her sister. She had got all of her anger out, she had taken out all of her pain and she was working on recomposing her life. Getting herself back on track. She was learning. She had never depended on anyone but now she had learnt how to depend on people. Troy had saved her. It wasn't as if she was going to commit suicide or anything that extreme. But Troy had taught her how to lean on people how to depend on them for strength even if it would dent her pride. And Gabriella couldn't have been more thankful for that. It was one of the reasons why she loved him so much. Because he had taught her so many things.

"Gab..." Sharpay mumbled. Gabriella turned around to look at the blonde. "You okay?"

Gabriella nodded and smiled brightly. "For the first time in a long time yeah."

Sharpay matched Gabriella's smile, while taking her eyes from the road momentarily. "Look I just wanna say something to you. I've been wanting to for a while now."

Gabriella's eyes enlarged in worry. Was there something wrong? There was only one way to find out. She sucked in a breath before opening her mouth to talk. "What is it?"

Sharpay laughed for a slight second before shaking her head rapidly. "Calm down you look like you're about to have an aneurism."

Gabriella let out a breath of relief. "God you scared me. What's up?"

Sharpay scratched her arm momentarily that was bare as she had taken off her coat and placed it in the back seat. "I just wanna thank you really."

Gabriella's black eyebrows narrowed in confusion. "For what?"

"For everything that you've done. I mean Zeke and I were in such a mess before all of this and I really didn't want to admit that. And then you came with me and helped me through it when Zeke broke things off with me and when I y'know and then you helped me pick up the pieces when me and Zeke got back together and if couldn't be more helpful that you did that." Sharpay told her sincerely. "I guess I'm just thanking you for moving here in the first place and putting up with me."

Gabriella felt tears of happiness well up in her eyes. She didn't know why though. "Thanks."

"Oh and with Troy, for the record I've never seen him look at anybody else the way he looks at you. He's a keeper." Sharpay informed. Gabriella smiled lightly remembering what Emma had told her, maybe it wasn't directed at him because she didn't know him but she knew that it was meant about him.

"So I've been told." The hot pink convertible then pulled up on the street of Gabriella's house. The blonde stopped the car and Gabriella was about to open the door after she had taken off her seatbelt. But then she looked at the blonde and sighed deeply.

"For the record." She began with a sly smirk on her face. "I did."

Then Gabriella swung her feet to rest on the ground, and she pushed herself gradually out of the car, she took one last look at the blonde who had confusion written all over her face. But then realization dawned on her and her milk chocolate eyes lit up like the sun. "OH MY GOD. GABI GAB!" Sharpay screamed after her.

Gabriella began laughing all of the way up the steps towards her house. She turned to look at Sharpay, held her hand up vertically and folded her fingers a few times. "Toodles Sharpay."

Rounds of laughter rung throughout the living room as she sat with her legs folded and her arm rested upon the arm of the couch. She was still physically exhausted after not going to sleep until around 1am and then she was up at 7am. She was like a child, it was Christmas day and she still woke up at the crack of dawn from the excitement of the event. Her and Emma were exactly the same, the previous year they slept in the same bed and both woke up within minutes of one another because they were both so excited. She was having a good day. She had woken up and kept herself busy, she had played with Lucas's new train set with him and the whole family had sat down and had Christmas lunch.

But now was the hardest part.

The family were sitting in the living room drinking coffee, reminiscing about the past. Gabriella had received a text from Troy earlier that morning wishing her a merry Christmas and that he couldn't wait to see her later that day. And she had replied more or less the same. But then she had remembered that he was due to come to her house and she was anxious. Because now she knew her sisters knew about the two of them having sex and with Troy's past record with the three of them she knew it wasn't really going to end well as he went the colour of a beetroot if they ever mentioned their relationship in a sexual way. Gabriella pulled her phone out of her pocket to see if he had texted her or tried to get in touch with her.

"Oh my god, she's been on that phone all day. Just tell him to come around." Cheryl instructed, after the glasses of wine over Christmas lunch and throughout the day they had ended up a little tipsy but Gabriella had kept her eye on it as she wanted to actually remember what Troy's face was like when she gave him his present and the same with her. Seeing as in he had made a big deal about it she wanted to remember it, she wanted to be happy when she saw him and she also remembered the last time she had been drunk infront of him she was absolutely paralytic and he had to take her to bed. She didn't want that to happen again.

"What?" Gabriella asked innocently, pretending to be oblivious. While she knew full well what they were talking about, she had been texting Troy throughout the day to see how his day was going and he had asked her the same thing.

"Troy. Duh!" Cheryl laughed, her voice slightly slurry. And that's when she knew Troy was going to be humiliated when he came around.

"Is that okay?" She looked around the room to see unanimous nods of the head confirming that Troy could come to her house. She hadn't seen him in nearly 36 hours and she was beginning to feel it, it was times like that when she began to think what she would do if they were ever to be apart. If they were ever to break up. The words seemed complete taboo for her.

"Of course it is honey." Alyssa was the only one of them who hadn't had a drink because obviously she was still breast feeding Emma and she didn't want it to interfere with Emma's feeding. So she had only had a couple of glasses like Gabriella.

"You promise you'll be nice?" Gabriella asked, she bit down on her bottom lip in anticipation of what the reply was going to be.

"Would we ever not be nice?" An amused Phoebe posed the question to her. Gabriella knew she couldn't handle her alcohol, which is mainly where she received it from and she knew that Phoebe wouldn't be going to bed soon with a banging headache or maybe even being sick.

"Meh." Gabriella commented before whipping out her phone again and quickly typed a message to Troy.

_You can come now, can't wait to see you. Love you _

"Have you thought about dad today?" Gabriella asked in a tiny voice, and immediately all eyes snapped up to look at her. Her phone vibrated eagerly in her pocket before she pulled it out quickly to look at the reply.

_On my way 5 minutes babe _

Gabriella smiled that he was on her way but then focused her attention back on the conversation at hand.

"What do you mean?" Cheryl asked, the alcohol still taken over her body but she seemed to put all of her efforts into asking the question soberly.

"I mean, he's all alone. He doesn't have anybody apart from us. Who will he be spending Christmas with?" Gabriella asked. She knew she shouldn't have been thinking of him but every year she did. She would have been lying if she said that she didn't. The previous years and ones before that she had thought what if he would have had another family. What if he would have been married and had more children, what if she would have had some brother's or maybe even more sisters? But now she knew, he was all alone. And she had said that she was going to try and have a relationship with him so he had been on her mind all of the day.

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't." Alyssa said sadly. "I mean he's our dad y'know. We'd be terrible people if we didn't think of him."

"You think Emma thought of him?" Gabriella asked her voice solemn, it was the first time she had allowed her emotions to show the whole day, the slight sorrow that she had felt. The slight ache in her heart that Emma wasn't there.

"I think she did." Phoebe smiled at Gabriella. "Even though she was stubborn as hell. I think she still thought of him, wondered about him."

Before the dinner that they had eaten they had proposed a toast to Emma and their grandmother and mother. It was like a family tradition, only this year there was one more person to add to the list and Gabriella had silently hoped that she had been there in spirit. "I miss her." Gabriella shrugged.

"I do too honey. But she'd want you to have a good, happy day." Alyssa instructed her. And then as if on cue there was a knock at the door. Gabriella's heart started to race violently against her chest. This was it.

"And then she'd want you to go and get your man and go upstairs and have sex with him." Cheryl commented before bursting out laughing at her own joke.

Gabriella's eyes jumped too large for her head, aswell as Dan's. She was sure that Dan knew she had had sex with Troy as nobody in that house could contain a secret, especially if they could embarrass Gabriella in the process. Gabriella jumped up and stood at the archway that lead into the foyer of the house.

Alyssa was laughing slightly at Cheryl's joke. "Okay not the last part about upstairs y'know. Kids down here and everything."

Gabriella smiled before she was going to go and get the door but she hesitated slightly. "Have I ever thanked you for moving here?"

"I think I remember you saying a couple of days before you started school that you were going to sit in the bathroom eating your lunch like Cady Heron from mean girls." Phoebe commented stupidly.

"Huh funny." Gabriella insulted before she heard the bell go off again. "But seriously, it's been one of the best things that have happened to me. And I love you guys so much."

All of her sisters smiled at her. "Oh gosh don't you'll set me off." Cheryl giggled slightly, Gabriella's giggle identical. Cheryl reached up and wiped her eye slightly to curb the tears that were threatening to fall. Yeah definitely wasted. "Go and get your man."

Gabriella jumped eagerly and walked to the door opening it quickly and she felt her breath ripped away from her throat. There he stood, he looked different somehow. His hair was perfectly shaped around his face and the tanned skin even though it was the end of December glowed, radiant like the sun. He was wearing a black zip up jacket but a white v neck shirt was peeking through where the zip wasn't all the way up. He was wearing dark denim jeans that were baggy around his legs. Her chocolate eyes were looking him up and down hungrily. Was it possible to have sex less than 48 hours ago and then want someone that much at that moment in time? Wait, why did she even ask that question? When a guy looked like Troy she was pretty sure she would want him all of the time. "Hey."

Troy didn't waste any time in leaning forward and pressing their lips together hungrily, his pelvis pushed up against hers causing an unwanted groan to emit from her lips which was muffled by his own lips. Then Gabriella backed away from the kiss and looked up at him wanting more but obviously she knew she couldn't. "Hey." She replied.

"Merry Christmas." Troy wished her, the grin wide on his face like a Cheshire cat. She realized that he had a small silver and red bag in his hand. Gabriella looked down at it and bit down on her lip.

"Merry Christmas. Is that for me?" She asked grinning widely.

Troy nodded eagerly before Gabriella shivered involuntarily, feeling the cold wash over her seeing as in she was only wearing a pink long vest with tights. "Yeah."

"GABRIELLA CLOSE THE DAMN DOOR IT'S FREEZING!" Gabriella recognized Cheryl's voice and she rolled her eyes annoyingly and Troy stepped into the house quickly as if he was scared.

"You ready for this?" Gabriella whispered to Troy.

"It's your sister's I'm never ready for them."

Gabriella giggled at Troy's slight uncomfortable nature around her sisters. She walked into the living room and Troy stood at the archway with his arm leaned up against the wood. "Merry Christmas." He wished to everyone in the family. Gabriella could sense his nerves as she walked over to the Christmas tree to lift up a little bag. There was unisons of Merry Christmas's echoing from everybody's mouths.

"So Troy, did you have a good night the other night?" Cheryl interrogated, her eyebrows rose up and down tauntingly.

"And there it is." Gabriella mumbled. "Cheryl! Stop." Gabriella ordered as she noticed that Troy's face had gone bright red.

"Troy you'll have to get used to us. If you're gonna be dating our sister." Phoebe said through her laughter.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to it." Troy replied, his face was hung down low looking at the floor but Gabriella could tell he was squirming. And she was dying to let out some laughter but she couldn't.

"Come on." Gabriella instructed, holding onto Troy's hand and lightly lacing their fingers.

"Gabriella." Phoebe called after her. "Don't forget to leave the..."

"Door open yeah I get it Phoebus." Gabriella used her old nickname that Gabriella and Emma used to call her alot of the time a few years ago.

"Oh and Gabriella." Cheryl interrupted her again. Gabriella rolled her eyes annoyingly. "If there's gonna be banging of the headboard make sure you turn up the music."

Gabriella bit down on her bottom lip her eyes widening to the size of saucers she thought that they were actually going to pop out of her head. "Just ignore them." Gabriella instructed Troy.

The two of them wandered upstairs until they were in Gabriella's bedroom, Troy sat down on the bed and laid out her present on the bed and Gabriella put hers beside it. She grinned so tight that her cheeks started to ache.

"Come here." Troy whispered and Gabriella eagerly obeyed to his request. She sat down on his lap and put her head in the familiar place of the crook of his neck. She smelt her favourite smell of his musky cologne hit her nostrils as she began to breath him in. He was so intoxicating. Something she would never grow tired of. "You okay?"

Gabriella nodded in the crook of his neck and she moved the material that covered his neck and she pressed a tender kiss to the golden skin. "I'm good. I missed you though."

Troy turned his head slightly and pressed his heart shaped lips to the cushion of her hair. "I missed you too. So I'm guessing your sisters know?" Troy referenced to the two of them having sex for the first time a couple of nights ago.

"Kinda." She whispered. Not that there was any need for her to whisper because the two of them were the only two in the room and it wasn't as if her sisters were outside her bedroom listening in. Well she wouldn't put it past them.

Troy chuckled her favourite kind of chuckle. "Okay open your present."

Gabriella clapped her hands together three times before sitting up and grabbing the one that she had bought for Troy which earned a look of confusion from him."No you open yours first."

"You sure?" Troy asked her.

Gabriella nodded. "More than sure."

"Okay." He said before grabbing onto the little package and he ripped at the corners he pulled off the wrapping paper and his eyes lit up as he looked down at the present she had bought him. He put the wrapping paper beside him on the bed. "Gab..."

"I know it's nothing much, but I know you said you treasured the one that your grandpa gave you, and I know that it's on its way out so I thought I'd buy you one so you could love it as much as you loved your other one because it was from me." Gabriella grinned, she had gone around loads of different shops to find the perfect wallet for him. "Open it." She told him eagerly. Troy opened the wallet and inside of it she had placed a picture of the two of them that had been taken the day that Troy had told Gabriella about the wallet.

"Gabi I love it, thank you." He spoke genuine as he leaned over and pressed his lips to hers. "Now you're turn." He told her as he pulled away.

Gabriella squealed slightly and pulled at the little bag that he had placed her present in, she pulled out a little green box, before looking at him warily. "It's not a ring is it?" She asked half playing, half serious.

Troy laughed before shaking his head. "No. Open it."

Gabriella pulled open the box and she grinned and her eyes lit up at the item in the box. Inside the box was a charm, a charm for her bracelet. It was a cupid arrow which had different coloured jewels among the bow where the string would usually be and amongst the arrow. "Oh my god." Gabriella felt happy tears fill her eyes.

"I remember when you said that every birthday and Christmas you get charms to add to it, and I know that your sisters didn't get you one this year because I already told them that I wanted to buy you one." Gabriella remembered how she had been slightly disappointed that she hadn't received a charm for Christmas that morning and Alyssa had told her that there wasn't one at the shop which she thought she would have liked so she said they were gonna go shopping together to buy one that she would love.

"Oh my god Troy. I can't believe you did that for me." Gabriella felt a tear drop down her face.

Troy leaned in half way and Gabriella closed the distance between them she kissed him slowly and sensually. Both of their eyes closed baking in the sensuality and love that was presence in the room at that moment in time. The two of them pulled away and Troy turned his body and wrapped his arm around Gabriella's waist. "Troy?"

"Hmm.." Troy murmured looking down at Gabriella's lips.

"I wonder where we'll be 10 Christmases from now."

* * *

**A/N: Who's up for an epilogue? :)**


	34. Happily Ever After

_"I am no one special. Just a common man with common thoughts. I've led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but in one respect I've succeeded as gloriously as anyone who ever lived. I've loved another with all my heart and soul and for me that has always been enough."_

Noah Calhoun: The Notebook

* * *

"Dude common drive, I don't really wanna know."

Troy complained as he leaned his head backwards onto the seat. "No, you really do and then she does this little thing with her hips and oh god..." Troy imagined Chad's face, him almost having an orgasm by the look on his face. "It's incredible. Seriously it's like times never been gone"

Troy cringed slightly and he almost felt bile rising from his stomach into his mouth from the mental imagery that was going on at that minute. Okay stop Bolton. "Chad, dude."

Chad was talking about his new and old girlfriend that he had been with for a couple of months. After high school, both Chad and Taylor had gone to opposite sides of the country, Taylor attending Harvard and Chad attending U of A, so physical separation of the two of them had lead to emotional separation. They had tried to piece things back together but it hadn't worked and few months prior, Taylor had returned and the two had tried to be friends but old feelings had got in the way and they had begun dating again, and Chad was informing him that the previous night they had had sex for the first time, well no it wasn't the first time. Rather confusing. It was the first time in a long time, that was how he'd put it. "What it's not as if you and the missus aren't at it all of the time?"

Troy smirked knowingly and looked at Chad and cocked his eyebrows tauntingly. "I'm not talking about that with you."

"Oh common. You have never ever told me what she's like y'know sexually. Chad's eyebrows rose up and down and Troy rolled his eyes but still amused at Chad.

"What makes you think that's gonna change now." Troy chuckled lazily, his elbow was rested on the interior near the window as the two of them were driving away from the basketball game they had just played.

After high school both Chad and Troy had gone to U of A and had both been drafted afterwards and the two of them were playing for the Lakers and had been for a couple of years now. Troy loved it, he didn't love the fact that alot of the time he had to be travelling and he had to be away from his family but he loved to go out there and see his family sitting on the bleachers cheering him on. It was something that he would never grow tired of. And he seemed to be more wired when they were there, he seemed to have gained strength from them and he couldn't remember a time that the Lakers had lost a game when his family had been there. It was just a norm to him really if they were there he would play the best game of his life.

"Oh Troy common!" Chad exclaimed, half whine also. "I tell you everything. So common tell!"

Troy chuckled; he wasn't usually a secretive person. He always told Chad everything, even when he had lost his virginity he told Chad every single little detail, from how long it lasted to how it felt being inside another person, it was the middle of junior year and Chad hadn't slept with anybody as of that time so Troy had boasted a little by telling him all of the gory details. But since then he hadn't. He had grown a private person. The relationship, the marriage had grown a private one. The only person he shared everything with and obviously the sex was his wife. It had always started out that way and it would finish that way. Until death did them part. "Chad. No."

Suddenly there was a vibration coming from Troy's pocket playing out the song Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. One of Troy's ever favourite songs that he had a generalized ringtone for everybody. The only person he had a specific one for was of course his wife. Carefully Troy pulled out the phone and tossed it to Chad without looking at the screen. "Dude answer it."

Chad picked up the phone lightly before squinting a little at the name on the front of the screen, of course Troy had no idea who it was. "She your mistress or something?"

Troy shook his head rapidly. "What the fuck you talking about?" It was something that Troy would never get his head around, he didn't know how he would ever be able to cheat on his wife. It was something he could never get his mind around, how if you loved someone you would be willing to betray them and hurt them as much as infidelity did hurt. Troy was just imagining of course, it had never happened to him. "Just answer the phone." Troy insisted this time more persistently.

"Fine." Chad slid the phone up to his ear. "Hello?" As soon as Troy heard a high pitched voice on the other line he didn't need to ask who it was. But worry rose in Troy's body when he saw Chad's face alarm and then it contorted into a frown. "Bolton, pull over."

"Cha?" Troy began.

"Troy just pull over man." There was panic in Chad's tone and he pulled the car over as fast as he could, near a breakdown phone. Chad then threw the phone over in Troy's direction and he hesitantly put it to his hear. He was gonna hear some horrid news wasn't he. She had been hurt, something had happened, she had left him.

"_Troy its Shar can you hear me?" _Sharpay's tone was rushed and frantic. Sharpay Baylor, she had been married to Zeke now for around a little over a year, it had been a rocky road since the two of them had broken up for about a year and Sharpay had just found out that she was pregnant. Something he had dreaded, another little Sharpay running around. Or a male version of her, even worse.

"Yeah. What's up?" Troy asked frantically, searching for the source of Sharpay's panic.

Troy sucked in a deep breath in anticipation for Sharpay's reply. "_Troy you need to come home right away."_

"What? Why?" Troy asked desperately his face turning towards Chad's who was biting down his bottom lip as if he knew what was going on.

"_It's Gabriella. She's gone into labour." _Sharpay blurted. Oh no.

Troy had gone away to play a basketball game and they were currently on their way home, she was eight and a half months pregnant and this was the last game he was going to play for a few months as he asked for leave to help Gabriella take care of the baby. He also made her promise that she wouldn't have the baby while he was away and she had promised.

Troy and Gabriella had been married for a little over four years now, people had thought it was crazy that they had got married when they were only twenty three but the two of them knew that the other one was the only one for them. So they had had a big wedding with all of their friends and family and it had been a joyous occasion for the both of them, neither of them had wanted it to end. "What? When?" Troy spoke frantically.

"_Well she said her water broke around a half hour ago but she's moving along kinda quickly?" _No that wasn't what he wanted to hear. He wanted to go home and see her moving around with difficulty and snapping at him because of the hormones and apparently it was all 'his fault. He didn't want to miss it. He couldn't miss it.

"What? You're fucking lying to me! Is this an idea of a joke?" Troy was verging on hysterical, it was the last thing he wanted. He needed to be there.

"_Troy I promise you I'm not lying. Do you wanna talk to her?" _Sharpay had begun calm now her voice was bordering on normal.

"Fuck of course I do." Troy breathed out as he rushed his hand through his hair. He could hear distantly the voice of his baby, his life on the other end of the phone before he knew she was on the other line. "Gabriella?"

"_Troy." _It sounded like she was crying, infact he was sure that she was crying.

"Yeah baby it's me. How you doin?" Troy asked calmly, even after all of these years he could still be calmed instantly at the sound of his voice.

He heard Gabriella laugh on the other line. Well at least she was laughing. "_I'm scared." _She replied honestly and Troy's eyes closed at the desperation in her voice, and then he heard her tortured sob on the receiving end of the phone call. "_Troy where are you I need you?" _

Troy closed his eyes in torture. He didn't want to miss this, he couldn't miss this. He had to be there. "I'm on my way baby I promise. Hold on until I get there?"

Neither Gabriella nor Troy had wanted to know the sex of the baby, they had wanted it to be a surprise and Troy nor Gabriella hadn't planned the pregnancy but once they had found out that Gabriella was pregnant they couldn't have been happier. It had been scary but they had both insisted that everything about the pregnancy had been a surprise. How ironic.

Gabriella giggled slightly; at least he knew she wasn't all alone. "_I'll try. I love you." _

"I love you too, I'll be there as soon as I can okay?" Troy knew he was on the verge of tears because he knew she needed him and he wasn't there. Every single time she had ever needed him in their relationship he had been there, starting from when Troy had found out that Gabriella's sister had died, even up to a few months ago when Gabriella had found out that the people who killed her sister had been released from prison she had been in pieces, and Troy had been there to pick up the pieces, even if he had been in Montreal he had sped at ridiculous speeds just so that he could be there for her. He then heard a muffling sound in the background before a piercing high pitched voice sliced through his ears.

"_Troy she's having this baby. It doesn't seem like its gonna be long. And don't worry he's with Phoebe and Gavin" _By this time Troy had pressed his foot down on the gas and he was going at ridiculous amounts of speed an hour but he needed to get there, he had to see her. He had to hold her hand tell her he loved her, tell her he was proud of her. Phoebe, one of Gabriella's sisters had been married for around just under 9 years and she was the mother of 3 children. Two twin girls and a boy. The girls named Emily and Sophie, and the boy named Jake.

"Well...." Troy began. "Tell her to wait!"

He then heard Sharpay laugh a little in the background. "_Yeah Troy what do you want me to do open her legs and shout hey little one stay up there your daddies not here yet?"_

"Something like that!" Troy answered frantically having just ran a red light.

"_Just get here!"_

The pain was unbearable; she had never felt pain like it in her life. It was worse than she had ever imagined. Her head was swaying from side to side as if it was going to take her pain away. She was sucking desperately at the stupid tube they had given her to take the pain away, but it had done anything but. The sweat was sticking to her head as her normally bouncy vibrant curls were matted and stuck to head. She was trying to gasp for oxygen desperately but it wasn't working. Her lungs felt like they were going to burn from the lack of air that she was receiving.

"Troy." She whimpered painfully.

Gabriella needed him there. She had become so attached to him that she could never ever imagine her life without him, he needed to be there, he had to be there to witness the birth of his child. She couldn't do this alone. He was her strength, he was everything to her. The reason that she woke up on a morning and the reason she went to sleep at night just so she knew he could be there that morning smiling at her giving her a good morning kiss.

But he wasn't there now.

And that's when she needed him.

Ever since Troy had found out about Emma dying she had leaned on him for such an unbelievable amount. But she never thought he grew tired of it. But he never did, he was always ready to listen to what she had to say, always there to hold her when she cried and whisper sweet nothings in her ear encouraging words of wisdom. She needed that right then.

"He's on his way honey." The midwife informed her reassuringly.

Gabriella knew she was lying. She knew that the midwife would say anything to her so that she could have a decent birth, and she wouldn't start screaming at the poor woman. Normally Gabriella wouldn't have thought to say a bad word to anybody but she was in pain, she was angry, she was scared. She was desperate. And he wasn't there. "I can't do this." She mumbled lazily her head tossing to the side again.

"You can honey. You can." The midwife reassured her. Her hands were resting on Gabriella's knees holding them apart as she looked up Gabriella's core. She had never felt so exposed in all of her life.

"No, listen to me. My husband isn't here and I need him here. He needs to tell me that everything's gonna be okay and he needs to be there when his child is born. I can't be alone. I just can't." Gabriella screamed, her eyes streaming with tears.

"You called?" A husky voice called although she couldn't see the source of it. No it couldn't be. She was just hallucinating. That could happen with the gas and air she was inhaling couldn't it? The voice was out of breath. Like he had been running.

And then she saw him.

Even after the 10 years they had been together and the pain that she was experiencing at that moment in time she still got the slight butterflies in her stomach. Even if the pain was overpowering it. She felt tears fall silently down her cheeks even if they blended in with the sweat that was pouring on her face. "Troy!" She called desperately as the spine splitting pain took over her small body.

The pregnancy hadn't been a painful one. She had been fine throughout although she had had a slight scare at around 7 months when she hadn't felt the baby move for a couple of days and she had been checked out and everything was fine. The doctor had informed her that the baby was just a lazy baby. Which she was thankful for. Maybe the baby would sleep all the way through the night. She prayed.

Within seconds Troy was at her side, his hand clutched hers. After 10 years Troy hadn't changed much, his face was more mature, he looked like a man now but he still had the same haircut that sometimes he wouldn't cut for around a month of two and Gabriella could have killed him for it she told him that he looked like Santa Claus or something, she knew that was an overstatement but still. Gabriella hadn't changed much either, she hadn't grown she hadn't put on any pounds apart from during her pregnancy but she was still petite and thin. Her face had matured more and the only difference with her hair now was that she had bangs.

"Okay Gabriella you have to push now. This baby's coming." The midwife instructed.

Gabriella nodded as she latched onto Troy's hand for the strength that she needed. Her hands clutched for dear life as she screamed so loud she thought she was going to crack a window. The pain was unbearable.

"Come on baby its okay, you can do this." Troy whispered encouragingly in her ear.

"YOU DON'T HAVE TO PUSH THIS BABY OUT TROY!" Gabriella yelled aggressively as she squeezed his hand so tight that his fingers should have popped out.

After the death contraction had finished Gabriella's body lay limp her head to the side where Troy was sitting next to her, her small chest heaving for oxygen. She couldn't breathe. Her mind casted back to when she had had a panic attack the night of a party and Troy had come to her house and taken care of her. Something that he had always done.

"Okay Gabriella, this is it. One final push okay honey?" The midwife told her encouragingly.

"I can't. I can't" Gabriella's emotion was getting the better of her. The body tearing pain was getting the better of her. She couldn't do it anymore. Her body was too tired, physically she needed sleep. This needed to be over. She felt like she had been pushing so hard that her brains were going to pop out of the top of her head. How big could one baby be? "I'm tired." Gabriella complained her eyes were streaming with tears from the pain.

"Okay baby, listen to me. Just listen. I'm gonna help you okay. Just sit up for me one second okay?" Troy coaxed but Gabriella couldn't lift up her limp body. Troy's hands slid under her back to lift her up so he could slide in behind her so that her head was leaning onto his chest. His hands latched onto hers as she began to squeeze as she felt the contraction begin. "Baby. We're gonna do this okay? Just think of the baby that's gonna be here as soon as we do this."

Gabriella didn't know where she found her inner strength but she gritted her teeth she squeezed Troy's hands as tight as a vice would and she threw her body forward as she pushed with all of her might, all of her being. Everything she had ever had was in the push.

And then there was nothing.

Gabriella's body fell limply back into Troy's embrace, his hands immediately unlatched from hers as he wrapped his arms around her to rest on the top of stomach. All of the way through the pregnancy Troy had been obsessed with the baby bump. Although Gabriella had become unbelievably attached to the bump she had been complaining the past couple of months that she wanted it over. Wanted it out. She needed to be free again.

And then there was crying.

Gabriella had never felt so relieved in her life. She let out a breath of relief along with a cry of happiness. One of Troy's hands reached up and stroked the bangs that were resting on Gabriella's forehead. "You did it baby, you did it."

The baby had been 3 weeks early. Gabriella had been excited but scared. With Christmas coming up she didn't want to be in the hospital over Christmas giving birth to a baby, but now two days before Christmas day she couldn't have felt more like everything had fallen into place.

Everything was perfect.

"Would you like to meet your baby girl?" The midwife asked with a bright smile on her face.

A baby girl.

Gabriella's heart soared through the sky. She had a baby girl. She held out her arms as Troy was still rested behind her stroking her forehead as her legs were still bent upwards. The baby was handed to her in a blanket and the cries were still piercing throughout the room. But that's what made her baby unique to everyone else's. Troy had been convinced that the baby had been a boy, with the way she was acting and how she was carrying the baby weight. But Gabriella had always had a secret doubt about it. The baby girl was handed into Gabriella's awaiting arms and Troy's arms wrapped securely under hers to support her.

"Look what we did baby." Troy grinned happily, there were tears of happiness streaming down his face too aswell as Gabriella's.

The babies face was screwed up as she cried uncontrollably. Her hair was a dark brown colour like Troy's, she had a ski slope nose like Gabriella and heart shaped lips like Troy. She was Troy's spitting image.

And then she opened her eyes.

Gabriella knew that all babies had blue eyes but these were a different kind of blue. They were a Troy kind of blue. They were shocking, piercing kind of blue the one's that you would see in a street and think that they were contact lenses.

"Mommy I wanna see the baby!" An energetic small voice came from the door of the room.

Gabriella and Troy had an older child also. He had been born 2 years and 11 months ago so he was nearly 3 years old. He hadn't been planned either, Gabriella and Troy had been married for a few months and then Gabriella had found out she was pregnant and she had never been so petrified in her life. She hadn't even told Troy for a number of weeks until she was sure that the time was right.

Dylan Bolton.

Unlike the new addition to the family he was more olive skinned like Gabriella, like the Montez's and he had brown eyes. Everyone had said that if you would give Gabriella short hair then he would be her twin.

"Okay you have to be careful." Troy instructed carefully.

Dylan walked over quickly before Chad lifted him up and held him in his arms for him to look down at the baby girl. "Is she ours mommy?"

Gabriella was staring down at her baby girl in awe as Dylan posed the question to her. "Yeah baby she's all ours."

Everything was perfect.

Gabriella was more than tired. She felt physically exhausted.

Having being released from the hospital only 24 hours ago she had barely slept that night having constantly being on edge that the baby would wake up. Gabriella and her husband had decided on her name around an hour after she had been born.

Madeline Leila Bolton.

It was Christmas eve and Dylan and Madeline were both sound asleep as Gabriella sat on the floor as she winced slightly from the pain that she had felt. With Dylan it had been different, he had been breach and Dylan had been 2 months premature so she had been rushed in for an emergency caesarean. There had been no pain no nothing.

Gabriella had thought that the pain had been severe when she had lost her virginity to Troy all of those years ago but it hadn't been as nearly as intense as the child birth she had experience the previous day.

"You okay?" Troy murmured as he finished peppering the fake snow onto the ground. Gabriella had the wellington prepared at the side of her ready to press it down to make it look like Santa had actually been. That was the one thing about the two of them, every Christmas they had always made Christmas perfect.

There was a glass of milk laid on the stove and a mince pie what Troy had taken a bite out of to make it look like Santa had actually been there. There was pretend snow all over the ground leading all the way over to the living room door. Gabriella was too physically tired to participate in anything she felt her eyelids closing. "Yeah I'm fine." She whispered sensually.

Troy crawled over to her small body and wrapped his arms securely around her so she could lean into his stone chest that hadn't changed a tiny ounce since high school. He had never gained weight, he had never lost weight and his body was still to die for. His rock hard abs and his muscley pectorals, it made Gabriella wonder how she had got pregnant twice in two years.

"Can I ask you a question?" She whispered.

"Of course you can." Troy responded as he pressed a kiss to her now vibrant curls which she had washed as soon as she had got home with her own shampoo and she had felt the steamy hot water wash over her body as if it was healing the traumatic experience which had happened in her body.

But would she have changed it? No way.

Infact would she have changed anything that had happened in the past 10 years? Of course she would. Although she was a strong believer that everything happened for a reason. She still couldn't help but yearn to have Emma back into her life. Have her live around the corner like Alyssa and Dan did, with their three children. Lucas, Emma and Adam. They were within walking distance and the whole family were happy. Lucas was almost thirteen and was turning into a little heartbreaker. Emma was Emma walking all over, she even looked like her and Gabriella still swore that it was her older sister reincarnated or something and Adam was completely different to the other two.

Cheryl was married to a basketball player named Jack and she also had three children. Two girls and a boy, she had named them Holly, Charlotte and Ashley. They were also incredibly happy. And all of the sisters had encouraged her to have three children in order to not break the 'tradition' that the family held of having three children. And Gabriella had replied yeah but none of your men can just keep it in their pants.

Gabriella had come on such a long journey since she had moved to Albuquerque. She had met the boy of her dreams she had run into alot of obstacles on the way but she had finally got it. Her dream. She was happily married with a partner that loved her, Dylan and Madeline and Dylan worshipped the ground he walked on and Troy had claimed that he had only done that because he was romantically fantasised by her which Gabriella had set him straight straight away. Also Lucille and Jack lived close to the family and they also popped in on a regular basis.

And Gabriella's father?

Gabriella had developed a relationship with her father. They weren't the best of friends infact sometimes they still had disagreements about why he left but they had grown to tolerate and love each other and Gabriella was glad that he had chosen to come back into her life even if it had caused her a great amount of pain at the time.

"Why have you put up with me all of these years?" She asked curiously. A question that had circled around her brain on a regular basis, for the past 10 years.

Troy chuckled slightly, the same chuckle he laughed on the first time she had seen him on the bus on the way home from high school. He slowly kissed her sensually and pulled apart since Gabriella didn't have the energy to do anything else. "You know me baby. I just can't walk away. I love you so much."

Gabriella smiled tightly. "I love you too."

That was one thing that they would always have in common.

They would never walk away from each other.

* * *

**A/N: Hi guys! Okay So it's all over and I'm kinda sad :(, I apologize if the last line/part was awful because I just couldn't think of the right words! But anyways I would just like to thank everyone for their support and their reviews for this story, even through my mini kinda hiatus thing. But I just wanted to thank you all you're kind words have been words of wisdom! So I'd just like to thank everyone for that!**

**In relation to some of the reviews I've recieved unfortunately I don't think I'm gonna write a sequel because it would be totally off topic to what the story was actually about after the epilogue, but if I do I will probably write a quick oneshot about their lives in relation to the story. **

**And again, I'm just gonna say I have got another story in the works but it is only in the research kinda period. As I've read some emotionally challenging + draining stories as of recently and I just thought I want to write something deep and heavy and meaningful and it portrays a real life situation in a way that you wouldn't imagine so sorry for the ramble but yes I am going to be writing a new story BUT in the mean time I am going to be carrying on with Let The Best Man Win which will be over soon as it's only short so there is only a few chapters left of that. So make sure I'm on your author alert if you've liked this story I'm sure you'll like that as it is a bit different but we'll soon see!**

**So again thank you for all of the support and I really hoped you've enjoyed reading it as much as I have writing it :) **


	35. Authors Note!

**Hi guys! Just a quick A/N it's not concerning the story, oh well it is actually but oh well. This morning I've recieved a PM informing me that this story Just Can't Walk Away has been nominated for an award of best 'indie' fic, what that means I don't know but I'd like to say thank you to the person who nominated. If you could let me know who you are I'd be so greatful :) BUT anyways if you could all try and vote I'd appreciate it soo much! The website link is **communitydotlivejournaldotcomslashintothelines **but you'll have to replace the dots and slash with the actual punctuation! **

**So anyways thanks guys and I will be back with a new story within the next week or so!**

**Thanks + get voting. If you vote then I will thank every one of you :) **

**Lotsa love!**

**Sophie xx :) **


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